


Here's to Hoping You Can't Stand Me

by nerfherder_02



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Ahsoka Tano Needs a Hug, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Anakin Skywalker & Ahsoka Tano Are Siblings, Band Kid Ahsoka, Bullying, CT-7567 | Rex Needs a Hug, Character Death, Childhood Trauma, Eventual Conspiracy Theories, F/M, Football Star Rex, Jango Fett is a Bad Parent, Just So We're Clear, Lux is an IDIOT, Maybe - Freeform, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Anakin Skywalker are Siblings, Obi-Wan adopts Ahsoka au, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Shaak Ti plays matchmaker, Slow Burn, Slow To Update, Tags Are Hard, ahsoka can SING, cousin cody may drop in, everyone's human just so ya know, for both of them oops, one-sided enemies to friends to lovers, rex has a LOT of brothers, rexsoka mainly, sorry about the economics lesson in chapter one, technically not beta read, violence against a child
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-09
Updated: 2020-12-26
Packaged: 2021-03-09 08:00:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 20,465
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27467584
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nerfherder_02/pseuds/nerfherder_02
Summary: Senior year should be smooth sailing for Ahsoka, since she's section leader in band and has her friends to lean on- except it's anything but that. Within a week of school starting, she's already caught up in a class-wide joke in which herself and, of all people, Rex Fett are deemed married by their Economics teacher. She's frustrated, because she's overcome too much in her life to be taken down by a dumb joke now. Obviously, it's Rex's fault they're being made fun of, until she realizes he's not the stuck up idiot she assumed he'd be.Rex Fett is determined to finish high school strong. With five brothers to care for thanks to his loser dad, the odds aren't in his favor- but it's only one more year until he's made it. That is, until somehow he gets wound up in dumb drama and Ahsoka Kenobi, of all people, is furious with him. He's not sure how to make things right, and manage to stay afloat in all his responsibilities.Neither of them realize how much they have in common, but maybe this chance encounter can bring them together, for better or worse.
Relationships: CT-7567 | Rex/Ahsoka Tano, Obi-Wan Kenobi/Satine Kryze, Padmé Amidala/Anakin Skywalker
Comments: 84
Kudos: 188





	1. how's the husband?

**Author's Note:**

> Okay- a couple of notes: yes, Obi, Anakin and Ahsoka are siblings. (The mental math I had to do for their ages- don't ask :/). Ahsoka took the name Kenobi when she was adopted, while Anakin kept Skywalker in memory of his mother. This is not particularly important to the story, just an explanation :) Another thing to know is that this fic will alternate POV, which means we follow Ahsoka for a chapter, then Rex for the next, and repeat. 
> 
> That being said, the next thing to address is a TW: Ahsoka's circumstances before her adoption were pretty rough, and she has a fairly graphic flashback that could be difficult to read. The flashback will be italicized, and I will put a summary of the scene at the end.
> 
> Other than that, I hope you enjoy! Or not, really, it's your choice :)

Ahsoka _hates_ having economics as the first class of the day. It’s only been one week, and she’s completely over it. She’s always late to school, and even though Mrs. Ti is a forgiving and kind teacher, it fails to change the fact that the subject bores her to death. Slowly, it’s killing her GPA and her will to not drop out of school early. _Senior year, Ahsoka, just hang on_ , she tells herself. At least Mrs. Ti was kind enough to seat her in the back of class, so when she finally dozes off, less of the other students notice. Plus, she has plenty of classmates to stare at- anything to stay awake. It could be worse, she knows, but not by much.

And yet, today, somehow, it manages to get worse. Today, Mrs. Ti is teaching the class about related goods.

“So, let’s say Ahsoka,” Ahsoka jerks upright upon hearing her name, the sleeves of her blue hoodie slipping across the desk. It's much too warm outside for a jacket but the school is always cold. “has just finished college, where many of you will be going soon. Now, college can be quite expensive, so she’s got a very tight budget. What kind of goods is she buying?” Mrs. Ti scans the room for a volunteer. Seeing none, she chooses her victim carefully. “Rex?”

“Inferior goods,” he answers in his usual serious way. It bugs her how little she's learned about him, especially since she's been his classmate since seventh grade.

“Very good,” the teacher continues. “Now, let’s say Ahsoka’s income increases all of a sudden.”

“She marries rich?” Lux jokes, and Ahsoka rolls her eyes at him. Ever since she transferred in around the third grade, Lux has been nothing but a nightmare to her. To her relief, he’s calmed down since he pushed it too far in middle school, making fun of the vitiligo splashed across her face and arms. Even still, he never passes up an opportunity to poke at her. Maybe he’s still bitter, maybe not- it doesn’t matter much to Ahsoka what he thinks of her anyways. Besides, no one else really takes him seriously anymore. 

“Now there’s an idea,” Mrs. Ti laughs, and Ahsoka groans, internally willing her teacher to stop talking. She doesn’t. “Ahsoka gets a job flipping burgers somewhere, when she runs into Rex! Rex is a football star, and is super wealthy. They have a whirlwind relationship and marry after two weeks of being reunited. Now, Ahsoka’s income is much higher than it was before. What kind of goods can she buy with your money, Rex?”

Ahsoka nearly shrivels on the spot. _Oh. My. Gosh._ Rex’s perfect composure cracks a little as he responds, “Normal goods.” 

Lucky for him, no one wants to poke fun at such a respected classmate. Ahsoka’s heart pounds, and she knows her face is only getting redder as most of the class turns to watch the drama unfold. She puts her face in her hands and braces for it.

“Oo, Ahsoka the gold digger, huh?” Steela Gerrera giggles. “I’d pay to read about that!”

“Real funny, guys. You really got me,” she tries to play it off cooly, but the heat in her cheeks is utterly sabotaging any attempt to appear calm and collected. She uncomfortably tugs at her hair- platinum-blonde-streaked-with-blue, twisted into twin braids. Even Rex can’t manage it, his ears are red-tipped as he stares rigidly at his notes. She continues to hope he’ll acknowledge her somehow, but he dutifully waits for the ruckus to die out, choosing to ignore it. 

Rex is untouchable: captain of the football team and star student. He’s like a character dreamed up in a teen drama somewhere. He even has the pretty golden eyes and blonde hair to match- though he keeps his hair fairly short. Mostly, though, he’s indecipherable. Sure, he _looks_ like a brainless sports star, but his grades say otherwise. And yet, he’s not a total stuck-up idiot like Lux would be if he had half the talent Rex did. It’s confusing, frustrating, intriguing, whatever. 

Ahsoka breathes a sigh of relief when Mrs. Ti continues her instruction without further meddling, and the class mostly returns to its original atmosphere. Then, she frowns, still upset. Even when Rex is part of a joke, she bears the brunt of it, without so much as an apologetic smile from him. He seems like a good guy, but then why would he just totally abandon her like that?

Not a moment too soon, the bell sounds, and Ahsoka frowns as she watches Rex leave within moments, still ignoring her. She rolls her eyes as she packs her backpack. Bariss Offee joins her at the door, with a sympathetic smile on her face.

“Well that was just…” Barriss trails off as she tries to cuff the too-long sleeves of her black sweater. She’s always tried to be a gentle and sensitive as a friend, which Ahsoka is grateful for now.

“Just awful,” she finishes, tightening her grip on the textbook in her hands as they shuffle past students flooding the hallways. She looks almost anxious, hardly daring to look at anyone, or anything except the ground or her books. “What is everyone’s problem? And you know what, I wouldn’t have even cared, but then Rex just _had_ to leave me hanging. Honestly, I just- I don’t get it.”

“Maybe he was embarrassed, too?” Barriss offers, cringing as Ahsoka turns a sharp glare on her. 

“Oh, I’m sure he was, after he just totally let me take the L there.”

Riyo Chuci, never not wearing a dress or skirt (unless she's marching for band)- today it’s maroon- meets the pair every day at the staircase on their way to band. Within moments of being in earshot of them, she speaks up, having spotted Ahsoka’s agitation. “What now?”

“Rex.”

Barriss explains before Ahsoka can, “Mrs. Ti made a joke that Ahsoka and Rex were married and he totally just shut down.”

“Oh, I see. And Ahsoka is angry... because?”

“I’m right here, y’know. And I am _upset_ because instead of helping me salvage our reputations, Rex just left me to handle it alone.”

“Maybe he didn’t know what to do?” Riyo says tentatively, and Barriss sighs. Ahsoka is certainly strong-willed, and there’s not much anyone can do to stop her in her tracks when she’s upset. She comes to her senses, obviously, but not until she’s had a moment. Maybe it’s a result of the bullying in middle school that she doesn’t take affronts easily. Barriss had tried to help Ahsoka through it, but something must have broken. Either way, it’s never been a serious issue. Hopefully it would all blow over in a day or two. 

For now… “Oh, my bad. I forgot Mr. Perfect has never been the butt of a joke before. Silly me, haha!¨ Sarcasm drips from Ahsoka’s voice. Then, she takes a deep breath, shaking herself out of her angry thoughts, and adds, “I’m sorry, guys, I’m not mad at you. I’m just super frustrated.”

Barriss pats her on the shoulder. “It’s okay, just, do try to settle down? I’m sure everyone’s forgotten about it.”

“I hope so,” Ahsoka replies miserably as they enter the band room.

Immediately, band takes her mind off the misery of Economics. She’s the saxophone section leader this year, so that means she’s in charge of rehearsal during break-outs. Finally, she gets to make rehearsal for marching and pep band fun, both for her and for the other saxophone players. No more stiff memorization drills- she’s been doing her research over the summer, and the memory games she tried at band camp seem to be a hit. Today, she’s happy to lose herself in marching steps and music. 

And yet, it’s over too soon. On top of that, to her disappointment, Lux pokes fun at her in the hallways, shouting, “Hey Mrs. Rex, how’s the husband?” 

Her eyes glint like daggers, but he’s already gone. Apparently, Lux wasn’t going to let it go, but by the end of the day, she wishes it had been just Lux. She’s about ready to lose it by the time the final bell rings. As fast as she can, Ahsoka stalks down to the band room, grabbing her instrument and drill book, and makes her way to the exit closest to the school fields.

As Ahsoka shuffles up the stairs, trying to avoid anyone that could make one more mocking comment, she bumps into someone in a hurry and wearing football pads. She stumbles, nearly dropping her saxophone. “Watch it!” she spits, and only fumes more when she turns to see Rex, wide-eyed in apprehension. “What is your problem?”

“I uh, I’m sorry,” he offers, reaching for the back of his neck and dropping his gaze.

“Oh, really? Too late for that,” she scoffs. It’s his fault she’s in this mess.

Rex hesitates, and then he admits, “I know. I’m sorry about class today. And for knocking into you, but I really have to go.”

“Fine, but honestly, what was up with that?”

“Really, I didn’t know what to say. I’m sorry. I do have to go, though. I hope I can make it up to you.”

“Sure. You do that.” Ahsoka says as evenly as she can and continues up the staircase without a glance backwards. In a moment, the adrenaline and rage wears off, and then she remembers the distress written in his eyes, and his stance. _What was that about?_ Surely he wasn’t scared of her? Impossible. _Then what could possibly have him so upset?_ Ugh, why does she even care? Surely Rex having one bad day can’t redeem the misery he caused for her. And yet, he had sounded so sincere… _forget it, Ahsoka_. Deep down, she silently makes a wish that nothing terrible was the source of his concern, but on the surface, she tries to convince herself to be glad that he’s in trouble. 

As always, drills take her mind off of it all. There is a certain comfort in repetition, and cooperation. Everything just as it should be, and yet every part having its own unique identity- beautiful. Each year Ahsoka falls more in love with music and everything to do with it. She’s determined to audition for college music, and hopefully earn a music scholarship. Over the years, she’s thrown herself into everything from choir to jazz band, even musical theatre. 

Music paved the way to a new life for her. Ahsoka picked up her first instrument- the ukelele, when she was eight years old. It was her brother’s, Anakin’s, but since he rarely stuck to a hobby for very long, it was sitting in disuse. She had just been taken in by Anakin and Obi-Wan, and would hardly speak to them- she was too afraid. Gingerly, she had taken the ukelele in her arms, and picked at the strings, humming something she had always sung to calm herself down. Her first home hadn’t been perfect- she had always lived with overwhelming dread of something like… the accident. When it finally, tragically happened, she ran away, and ran into Obi-Wan.

Obi-Wan must have been in his late twenties at the time, but he changed her life. The day she ran away, he had found her, sobbing and shivering. He recognized the signs right away, having found Anakin before his father, Qui-Gon, had adopted the boy (though he passed away soon after), and immediately approached her.

Ahsoka almost laughs remembering his awkward, clumsy attempts to talk to her, and convince her to come with him to get food. She had mostly only communicated through timid nods, holding her arms tight around her. But somehow, Obi-Wan managed to get her name. One relatively short court case later, she had been officially adopted.

Anyways, that ukelele was the first step of Ahsoka becoming who she is now. Bright, and determined to redeem the broken parts of her life, to make up for lost time. 

Now, the band director, Mrs. Unduli, announces a water break. The August heat can kill a careless band student, or so the band camp legends say. Whether a student truly died at rehearsal matters not, for the story serves its purpose: making sure students make good use of their water breaks. 

Ahsoka always remembers to refill her water before rehearsal- at least, usually she does. Apparently in the heat of her conflict with Rex, she forgot about her water. Luckily, she still has about a quarter of the bottle left, but it’s not ideal. 

“Forgot water?” Riyo remarks, eyeing Ahsoka’s disappointed look. 

The latter nods sadly, “Yeah, I’ll be okay, but it still sucks.”

“Why would you forget?” Barriss asks, having joined the girls halfway through Riyo’s question. 

“Oh, right, how could I forget?” Ahsoka takes a deep breath. “Guess who I ran into, or rather, who literally ran into me on the stairs before rehearsal?”

“No, Rex?” Riyo asks, eyes shining.

“Yup. The guy just runs straight into me, fumbles through an apology, and says he has to go, and then just, runs off!”

“Wow, sounds like a terrible thing to do,” Barriss says, looking between Ahsoka and Riyo. 

“I guess, I don’t know. He did look really worried. Still doesn’t mean I forgive him. Lux is having a field day with this. It’s like him making fun of my skin all over again.”

Riyo exclaims, “Ugh, do _not_ even mention his name! That boy is an idiot if I ever saw one. Can’t believe him, really.”

“You could say that again,” Ahsoka sighs. “Let’s just say things aren’t looking great for this year.”

“That’s too bad,” Barriss says with as much sympathy as she can muster. 

With that, the five minute break is up, and Ahsoka drills with the band until they’re about ready to collapse. Finally, they’re dismissed, and with a final goodbye to her friends, Ahsoka shoots a text to Anakin to pick her up. He should be done with his classes at the local technical school by now. Besides, even when he’s forgetful in every other part of his life, he never fails to be there for Ahsoka. 

When Anakin finally pulls up to the school in his beat-up-looking-yet-fully-functioning car, she perks up, ready to leave the school. If only she could just participate in band, and nothing else. 

“Hey ‘Soka, how was school?” His brown hair shines in the sun as he pushes it out of his face. 

Ahsoka merely grunts, leaning forward until her head hits the dashboard.

“That bad, huh? It’s only been a week and a half, what’s so bad?”

“You don’t even want to know,” she groans, voice muffled by her arms crossed in front of her face.

“Well, I asked, so…” 

Ahsoka sits back up and takes a deep breath. All at once, she relates the whole story of the day, minus Rex’s apology on the staircase- she still hasn’t made her mind up about it.

Obviously trying not to chuckle, Anakin finally responds, “Honestly, I’m sorry, ‘Soka, stuff like that happens all the time in high school.” He shudders dramatically. “Not something I’d ever want to go through again. I say just give it a week and things will settle down. And I can punch Lux for you if it he keeps it up.”

“I’ll punch him myself if he doesn’t drop it. He’s such a jerk. I don’t know why he has such a problem with me.”

“Kids like that only want attention. Try to ignore him, but yeah, punch him if you have to. I’ll convince Obi-Wan not to lecture you when you get suspended.”

Ahsoka laughs, “Alright, sounds like a plan.”

“And also, try and give that Rex kid a break. He probably didn’t mean for this to happen. And plus, it’s mostly Lux’s fault for spreading rumors.”

“Right, sure. I’m still a little mad, though.”

Anakin shrugs, and suggests, “Well, maybe try talking to him about it.”

She spits out an incredulous laugh. “I don’t think so. Football team captain, and probably top five in our class for grades? No way I can just waltz up to him.”

“I don’t know, seems like most of the Fett kids are decent people, can’t say the same about their parents, unfortunately.”

That gets her attention. “Really? How do you know so much about them?”

“Your uncle Plo worked with bad situations like theirs some time ago, remember? He says it’s not pretty, but somehow most of the boys are turning out okay- it’s honestly a miracle, those guys must have nerves of steel.”

“Oh, I see. I guess I didn’t know that he worked with them specifically.” Ahsoka turns to look out the window. If it’s true that Rex has some issues at home, then maybe she’s being too harsh. And he had looked so worried- what if something had happened? She tries to shove all the worry and confusion away for now. _It’s not like I can ask him about it anyways_. “Hey, when are we going to see Uncle Plo again?”

“Soon, I hope. I think he gets back in town next week, so maybe we can see him then.”

“I wish he’d take me with sometime,” she sighs.

“Ahsoka, you have school, and he travels for work. Speaking engagements aren’t all that exciting, y’know.”

“I know, I know. But you and Obi-Wan have gotten to go, so I want to, too.” Ahsoka recognizes their street, and the familiar apartment building on the right.

Anakin replies as he pulls into their parking spot and shuts off the car. “Yeah, I know. Maybe over a break or something. I don’t know. Ask Obi-Wan.”

“Alright, I will.” It’s a short walk up the stairs to their apartment on the second floor, and Ahsoka races Anakin every time. This time, she loses, and blames her heavy backpack. 

Anakin unlocks the door with a triumphant grin, and motions for Ahsoka to go inside, “Losers first, my good madame.”

Ahsoka scoffs, “Fine, I’ll be the first one to actually get _inside_ the apartment.” She dashes for the door, but Anakin grabs her and pulls her back.

“No you don’t!” he cries, leaping past Ahsoka and through the doorway. “I win this time!”

“Only because I _let_ you,” she retorts with a smile, following him in. Slipping her shoes off, she swings the door shut behind her. “Obi! We’re home!”

A voice echoes to them from the short hallway on the left leading to the two bedrooms and the bathroom. “I’ll be right there!”

She drops her backpack on the kitchen floor and slides into a chair at the table, just as Obi-Wan emerges into the main living space. He frowns at the backpack on the floor. “That’s not where that goes.”

Groaning a bit louder that necessary, she replies, “Yes sir,” and drags the backpack over to her chair, hanging it from the chair’s backrest.

Obi-Wan rolls his eyes, yet says, “Thank you. How was school?”

Anakin chuckles, throwing a plate of pizza rolls into the microwave.

“It’s not funny, Anakin.” Ahsoka glares at her brother, who shrugs apologetically.

“Well, what happened?” Obi-Wan asks, looking between Anakin and Ahsoka.

“Basically, a teacher made a not-funny joke about Rex Fett and me, and I’m getting teased all day because of it.”

Anakin adds, “Spare her the advice, I already said to ignore it, but punch Lux if she has to.”

Obi-wan sighs, “I can’t condone violence, Ahsoka, but Anakin makes a fair argument. I’m sorry that happened.”

Ahsoka grins, “Oh, Lux is _so_ in for it!”

Obi-Wan merely shakes his head, used to his siblings’ antics now. He starts to talk to Anakin, something about pizza rolls being unhealthy, and dinner being too soon, but Ahsoka heads to her room.

It’s a hopeless battle to keep Anakin away from his unhealthy snacks. In fact, that was how she and Anakin became close. The younger brother hadn’t exactly warmed up to her right away, but with Obi-Wan working, they had to spend a lot of time together. The day of the ukelele incident, Anakin had stumbled upon her with the instrument. Ahsoka had frozen. Instead of shouting or complaining, however, Anakin had smiled and asked if she wanted McDonald’s for lunch. Confused, Ahsoka had set down the ukelele, and repeated Obi-Wan’s instructions not to leave the apartment. 

“C’mon, I’ve got some money, and the McDonald’s is only a block away, we’ve got this!” Anakin had reassured her. He was right, she did want McDonald’s. 

To this day, she’ll never turn down chicken nuggets and fries. They still go to the same McDonald’s when they can. That first visit had changed something between them, and from then on, they were inseparable- much to Obi-Wan’s dismay. 

Smiling softly to herself, Ahsoka sets her backpack down near her desk, and then gracelessly drops herself onto her bed with a sigh. She stares at the ceiling fan, and a thought creeps into her mind. _It’s senior year now_. Not that she’s worried, of course not. Obi-Wan and Anakin made it just fine after high school, so why shouldn’t she? She’s always been motivated, positive, hard-working, and soon it would all work out. It had to. She had to make something of herself, she had to prove that it was all worth it, that the accident was worth it. 

Ahsoka’s never told anyone- not even her brothers, about it. The anniversary would be here in a few weeks. Obi-Wan and Anakin would celebrate her ‘found’ day, but Ahsoka would always find herself staring at the ceiling fan on every single one of those nights, feeling more lost than ever. It still doesn’t make sense, and maybe it never will.

\----------

_“Don’t touch us!” Morai screams, tears falling freely from her hate-filled eyes. Ahsoka trembles, too frightened to scream with her. Thunder rumbles, but she doesn’t dare take her eyes off her attackers to glance out the window of their presumed-abandoned fourth floor apartment._

_“Shut up,” one man hisses, brandishing a bat. Morai never flinches._

_“Leave us alone,” she commands, but she looks so small, so fragile. The men advance anyways, faces hidden save for their eye glinting murderously._

_“Scum like you two don’t belong around here. Especially_ her _.” The other man points accusingly at Ahsoka, who tries to hide her face. “Defective, trash.”_

_“Stop!” Morai shouts again, and the men just laugh. Their slow, confident advance sends waves of dread through Ahsoka’s stomach. She doesn’t know how Morai has the strength to stand, while her knees feel weak and brittle._

_And then, in an instant, Morai lets out a wild screech and charges the man closest to Ahsoka. “Ahsoka, RUN!”_

_Something about the desperation of her scream jolts Ahsoka’s trembling limbs into action. She darts for the door, while the second man lunges for her, and misses. At the door, she turns around, to see both attackers now distracted by Morai clawing viciously at the first man’s face. In a moment of uncertainty, it seems as if the girl, barely three years older than eight-year-old Ahsoka, could win. Until everything comes crashing down. In one sickening moment, the second man tears Morai away from the man she’s desperately fighting, and sends her flying, into the window. The force of the girl’s skull is enough to crack the glass with a crunching, clanging sound that Ahsoka can feel in her very bones._

_Morai’s head lolls to the side, blood trickling from her parted lips, and for one brief moment she makes eye contact with Ahsoka, still paralyzed in the doorway of the dim apartment. A crash of thunder booms somewhere outside. Her face screams the same message:_ run _. And Ahsoka does. Her ears go deaf to the sounds from the room she just left, and she runs. And runs, and runs, until she numbly collapses on the sidewalk._

\---------

Ahsoka shudders at the memory, shoving it aside. She can’t think about it, not now. On the anniversary, then she lets herself remember, if only to preserve Morai’s sacrifice, and remind herself of her responsibility to make up for that day. Morai had saved her, and now she has to make something of herself, to prove she was worth it. She couldn’t tell anyone- no. If she told, then _they_ could come back. Sometimes she looks up the old news articles about the ‘freak accident’ that left ‘unidentified girl’ dead. Something about the storm and furniture falling on her- lies. _But why?_ Why would anyone falsely report the cause of death of a girl like Morai? It has never made sense, and probably never will, so Ahsoka locks the memory up with all the other dark and damaged parts of her life.

Enough of that, anyways, she has homework to finish before the day is over. Maybe she’s taken on too many advanced classes this year, but anything to help her college admission goes. Feeling more run down than usual, Ahsoka heaves her backpack off the floor and drops it next to her on the twin bed, rather than working at her desk- the one Anakin had built last year for a throwaway carpentry class. Mindlessly, she works through her math homework, then chemistry, then economics. The busy work all blurs together, but it’s something to focus on.

Later in the evening, Obi-Wan calls her for dinner, and she finds Anakin already in the kitchen, dishing up- even though he already had pizza rolls earlier. Obi-Wan’s not the greatest cook, that goes without saying, but he’s always said that anyone can follow a recipe. So far, it’s worked out perfectly. He must have had a long day at work, though, because he only makes low effort meals like baked potatoes and salad when he’s unusually tired.

“Thanks Obi-Wan!” she says, sliding into a chair at the table. “Do you want me to take a turn tomorrow?” It’s the least she can do, even if the week has been hard on her, too.

“You don’t have to, but I won’t say no if you insist.”

“Alright! I got you tomorrow.”

“How come no one asks me to cook?” Anakin asks, a mischievous glint in his eyes. He knows the reason, of course, but Obi-Wan takes the bait every time.

“Anakin, every time you use something more dangerous than the microwave, things end poorly. Now I’m very happy that your risky behavior has gotten you far in your career, but I will not allow it in the kitchen.”

Anakin smirks. “Sounds like fun if you ask me.”

“I’m sure. If you’re lucky, you can help me tomorrow,” Ahsoka laughs, ignoring a pointed look from Obi-Wan.

One dish duty, study session, and board game with Obi-Wan later, Ahsoka decides it’s time to get ready for bed. After saying a ‘goodnight’ with a yawn to her brothers, she heads to her room to throw on pajamas, and then to the bathroom to wash up her face and brush her teeth. Fifteen minutes later, she turns out her lamp and slides under her covers. 

  
To her surprise and dismay, she finds herself thinking about something else tonight, or rather, someone. It still bothers her that she had snapped at Rex when he really didn’t mean to get her in trouble, and was stressed out himself. Sometimes she can get so defensive, that she just locks up, and she hopes he doesn’t think she’s still angry with her. Not that he’s giving it a second thought, but if he is- _oh forget it_. Finally, she makes up her mind to make it to school early tomorrow, and apologize as soon as she finds him. Her resolution satisfies her racing mind, and soon she’s drifting off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Summary of potentially triggering scene: two male attackers come to kill Ahsoka and her sister, Morai. Morai distracts them so Ahsoka can escape, but doesn't survive.
> 
> Anyhow, thank you so much for reading, and I'm so incredibly excited to embark on this fic. Shoutout to my friend and ideas collaborator- whose ao3 username I have yet to know -_- lol!


	2. we'll all stick together

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alrighty! First of all I want to apologize if there's a couple grammar mistakes here and there. It is currently past midnight, but I was SO excited to get this chapter out, that I may have missed a mistake, yikes. Anyways, wow, this chapter was SO much fun to write, domestic clones make me soft, okay? :') Enjoy, or not, it's up to you!!

Rex doesn’t care to admit to himself that his conflict with Ahsoka bothers him a bit more than it really should. But he can’t think about that right now. Hardcase is hurt, and of course his no-good father would rather “not deal with it right now,” leaving Rex to skip practice- which doesn’t make his coach happy. The first game is Friday, and it’s all Rex can do to swallow all his apprehension about school- from Ahsoka to football, and focus on his little brother.

In record time, he changes out of his football gear and slips back into his jeans and sweatshirt- whatever he picked out first this morning. Mornings are always busy in his house, having five younger brothers, Fives, Echo, Jesse, Kix, and Hardcase, to feed and get to school. Jango usually doesn’t show his face at home until midday, preferring to sleep off his hangovers in whatever girl’s apartment he ended up in. Rex scowls at the thought, and shrugs it off as soon as he can, trying to drown his anger with concern for Hardcase. 

The youngest of the bunch, Hardcase certainly lives up to his nickname (try calling him by his given name, he dares anyone to see how well it goes for them). The elementary school lets out later than the high school, so under normal circumstances, the boys would be taking the bus home. Today, however, things didn’t go according to plan. The coach had called Rex out during warmups, and told him to answer the phone in the classroom nearest to the athletic doors. Even though Hardcase wasn’t crying over the phone, his normally strong voice had quivered and cracked as the boy had described a nasty fall off the playground during extra recess. Rex bites back a thought about medical bills, and starts up his car. 

Rex’s brothers’ school isn’t a far drive- only a few blocks, but he finds himself pushing past the speed limit anyways, which is quite reckless for him, since a ticket would mean money out the window. _The family can only afford one guy throwing money away- if that_ , Rex thinks bitterly. 

When he finally reaches the principal’s office, Kix jumps up from a chair across the room, and runs for his brother. “Rex!” he cries, “you’re here!”

Rex pulls him into a short hug and ruffles his dark hair affectionately. “‘Course I am, Kix.”

“When Dad didn’t answer, I got really worried.” Kix pauses, then adds, “I’m sorry you can’t go to football.”

“Aw, forget football anyways, right? How’s ‘Case?”

Before Kix can reply, the secretary, a gentle-looking woman, clears her throat, and Rex looks over to meet her stern look. “Rex Fett, I assume?”

“That’s me, ma’am.”

“Do you know why your father was unavailable today?”

_Because he never takes calls from any of our schools_. Instead, Rex says, “I believe he’s at work.” A lie, he knows, but the secretary accepts it. 

“Can you ask him to call us during office hours later today, or tomorrow?”

“I can, but he forgets to do stuff like this a lot.” Rex shrugs apologetically. No one could be more frustrated with his father than himself. 

“I see. Do try to emphasize the… importance… of this call. I understand that he is a single parent, and likely busy, but there are some things that must be discussed as a matter of urgency.”

“I understand, ma’am, I’ll let him know.”

Just then, the door to the nurse’s office cracks open, and then Hardcase bursts through. “Rex!”

His arm is in a sling, but that doesn’t stop him from barrelling into Rex’s side with his good side, prompting an ‘oof’ from the older brother. “Hey ‘Case.”

“Guess what? Guess what?”

“Uh, ‘Case, you can tell me but-”

But Hardcase doesn’t wait for the rest. “The nurse thinks I fractured my wrist! I might get a cool cast! Can I get one, please?”

“We’ll talk about it in a minute, Mrs…” Rex pauses, reading the nametag at the desk, “Tiplar has something to tell me.”

Mrs. Tiplar smiles and reassures him, “Oh that’s all. You should speak with the nurse about your brother, but that’s all I need from you.”

“Oh, alright. Thank you,” Rex replies, then takes Kix and Hardcase by their hands and heads to the nurse’s office. Pale blue walls encompass a cot, a cluttered desk, a few rows of wire shelves, a couple of chairs, and various pieces of nursing equipment. The room feels cramped but not suffocating; Rex takes all of it in, spotting his brothers’ backpacks on the floor beside him as he steps inside. 

The nurse is a tall woman with fair skin and rectangular glasses resting on a small nose. Her hair is blue, _not as dark as Ahsoka’s color_ , Rex thinks- _where did that come from?_ She greets the boys with a smile, and reaches out to shake Rex’s hand. Rex lets go of Kix’s hand to take hers. “Hello, I’m nurse Che, you must be Rex?”

“I am,” he answers simply. Hardcase begins tugging at his hand, silently begging to be let go of, and Rex complies reluctantly, hoping his brother knows well enough not to hurt himself more.

“Good to meet you, I’m not sure I remember you as a student.”

“We- I was in junior high when my family moved here, so you probably never saw me.”

“A shame, you seem like a fine young man. No matter, anyhow, please take a seat.” She motions to a chair across from her desk. Then, to the brothers, she adds, “You boys can sit on the cot, and please behave.”

“Yes ma’am!” Kix says, hopping up on the cot- a stout platform with a blue cushion covered with a clear plastic casing, and waves for Hardcase to join him. With a little assistance, the younger is soon seated next to the older.

Once both herself and Rex are seated, the nurse begins, “As you already know, your brother came to me today following a particularly dangerous fall off the playground equipment today.”

“I almost caught Petro! I just tripped,” Hardcase loudly complains, followed by Kix’s admonition, a drawn-out ‘shhhhhh.’ Rex gives them a pointed look, and they settle down again. 

“I’m sure you’ll have him next time, whenever that may be.” Mrs. Che smiles, and continues. “That being said, I’ve taken a look at the injury on his arm- luckily it was just the arm- and I believe it wise to consult a more skilled physician than myself. There’s only so much I can do here, and I believe that he should have X-rays taken, to be safe. I’ve wrapped his arm and given him a sling as a precaution, but if there is a break, he’ll need a sturdier cast. I tried reaching out to your father, but he was unavailable. Hopefully you can relate to him what I’m telling you now.”

Rex nods, choking back a sigh. “I understand. Thank you for taking care of him.”

“Of course. I’m going to let you take him now, but please do try to take him to urgent care when you can. It’s not an emergency but, well, I’ve already explained myself. If you could, make sure any doctor’s notes are passed along to the school.”

“Alright, I will. Thanks again, for everything. It was good to meet you, Mrs. Che.” He reaches to shake her hand once more.

“Likewise. You boys take care, alright?”

“Alright!” Kix exclaims, slipping off the cot, then turning to help Hardcase down. 

“I’ll come and show you my cast!” Hardcase cheers with a grin.  
  


“ _If_ you get one,” Kix reminds him.

“Whatever,” Hardcase huffs. Then, he makes a break for Rex standing a couple paces away. 

“Alright you two, say thank you and goodbye,” Rex says, taking Hardcase’s good hand, and picking up his backpack from the floor. 

Kix grabs his own backpack, and the two younger brothers cacophonously follow Rex’s instructions. Mrs. Che smiles and waves as they exit back into the main office. The secretary also bids them goodbye, and soon after all three of them step out into the warm August air. It’s hot today, and Rex thinks guiltily that he’s almost glad he had to miss practice. A thought crosses his mind about Ahsoka and the marching band’s rehearsal.

However, his mind is interrupted by Hardcase cheering in a sing-song voice, “I’m going to get a ca-ast! I’m going to get a ca-ast!”

“Y’know, ‘Case, that means no recess for a while,” Rex says.

Immediately his face sobers, and his lip quivers a little. “No recess?”

Rex scrambles to soften the obviously devastating blow to a five-year-old boy. “Well, they still let you outside, but you might not get to climb or anything for a few weeks.”

Hardcase’s face softens only a little. “I can climb as long as they don’t catch me,” he says, a mischievous grin on his face. 

“No, ‘Case! You have to be good, or you’ll get hurt more!” Kix exclaims indignantly. 

They reach the car, and Hardcase says softly, “Rex?”

“Yeah?” Rex pulls open the door to the back seats of his car. 

His eyes look glassy. “I don’t want a cast. I want to climb.”

“Aw, ‘Case, it’ll be okay. We’ll get you checked out, and everything will be okay. Maybe we can get you a treat on the way home.” Rex winks as he finishes buckling Hardcase’s seatbelt. That seems to cheer him up for now. It couldn’t _really_ hurt the budget to grab an ice cream cone for his brother, considering the circumstances. Kix, having finished loading the trunk with the backpacks, slides into the back row as well. Rex climbs into the front seat and asks, “You buckled, Kix?”

“Yep!”

“Alright, we’re going home first, to check on Jesse. Kix, you should stay home with Jesse, and Dad, if he’s there.” Jesse, attending the local junior high, has most likely taken the bus home- he usually does, anyways. Fives and Echo are probably still at practice at the high school. Unlike the rest of the boys in his family, Jesse prefers soccer, so he has sports in the spring. 

“But I wanna see the doctor’s office!” Kix complains. Rex shifts the car into gear, and begins to drive to their home. 

He sighs. “I don’t know, Kix. I know you do, but it just depends. Do you have homework?”

“No! I finished during work time.” _If only high school had that magic work time_.

“Alright, maybe you can come with. Fives and Echo should be home soon anyways, maybe they can stay with Jesse.” The car’s clock reads _4:00_ . It could be that Jango has already made his way home, and headed out again. He does have a job, but the work isn’t regular, and if he’s honest, Rex isn’t sure if his father is employed in a _legal_ job. If he’s not working, Jango is out at the local bars. He tries not to think about it as Kix and Hardcase chatter away about school. 

The two boys in his car’s back seats are still too young to really understand what goes on behind the scenes in their home, since their mother’s death. Rex has had to watch each of his brothers go through the same stages- starting with asking questions.

The first time Echo had asked, “Why doesn’t Dad come to our games anymore like all the others do?” he had been just about twelve, and Rex had been thirteen. 

Rex had figured out soon after his mother died, in childbirth with Hardcase, that it would be up to him to be there for his brothers. He had tried and failed to talk to his father, to make sense of why he was so distant, and cold, but he had been blocked every time. Jango would shrug him off, blaming his mother’s death, the weather, a bad day at work, until Rex had given up. And then, to hear the quiet, hopeless questions- the same ones he never could answer himself- from Echo, hurt like a dull ache that never heals. 

Trying to dispel the hollow feeling in his chest, Rex had replied, “I don’t know, Echo.” But he was determined not to let his brothers suffer the way he did, and so he added, “But if Dad’s not there for you, _I_ will be. We’ll all stick together.”

Echo had smiled softly. “Thanks, Rex.” He was just thirteen; Echo was just twelve.

Fives, on the other hand, usually handled things in his own unique way. He became the bright-eyed joker of the bunch, never acknowledging his dad’s absence at the dinner table except when spinning it with a quip that kept them all laughing. Still, Rex remembers the quiet crying at night, and the pain behind those cheery eyes. He remembers Fives breaking down one night, shattered, and crying, “Why does Dad hate us?” 

It’s true that the death of their mother had caused Jango to withdraw, and become cold with his children. Fives took it the hardest. When their mother was alive, Fives had always been his father’s son, joining football first out of the brothers, like his dad, and hanging on his father’s every word. And then, when Jango broke, something in Fives had broken too. At least he had Echo. Fives and Echo have always made a good balance, and Rex always thanks the kindness that had given the twins to the family.

Then there’s Jesse, painfully reminding Rex of himself. The hard set of his jaw whenever Jango stumbles through the door, the protective arm in front of the youngest- all of it is like looking in a mirror. Jesse had struggled the most- second only to Fives, with adjusting to his father’s lack of interest in his sons. And Rex had worked twice as hard to be there for Jesse. The twins had each other, but Rex wanted to have Jesse’s back.

That’s why they’re on their way home now, because Rex doesn’t want Jesse to be alone, even if he is ‘getting too old for it.’ What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him, especially if it’s a little love from his brothers. 

Rex finds himself pulling the car into the driveway of the squat house the Fett boys call home. The landscaping needs work, the driveway could use a power wash, and the siding needs a bit of paint here and there, but home improvement is probably last on Rex’s list of responsibilities. Besides, fall would be here soon enough, and the run down look might add to a Halloween feel. 

As soon as the car comes to a stop, Kix hops out and dashes to the trunk to grab his and Hardcase’s backpacks. Rex helps Hardcase out of the car, and takes his own backpack out of the trunk, swinging it over one shoulder and taking his sports bag with the other arm. 

Rex’s gut feeling was right; he spots Jango at the kitchen table when he steps into the house. Jesse is nowhere to be found, which probably means he’s in the room he shares with the twins. 

His father spots Hardcase’s arm and remarks, “What happened now?”

Rex answers quickly, “He had an accident on the playground today. I’m taking him to urgent care, at the nurse’s recommendation.”

Jango chuckles, “Kids these days. Little sprains never hurt anyone.”

Swallowing a cutting retort, Rex replies, “If it’s broken, he’ll need something better than a wrap and sling.” He shoos the younger two up the stairs to the right of the door once they have their shoes off. 

“Do what you want. I’m leaving anyways.” At that, Jango stands and grabs the keys to his car.

“I will. Also, the school wants you to call them, by the way.”

His father’s eyes roll. “About what?” 

“They didn’t say.”

“Then it’s not important.” He turns to leave again.

“I’d say it is, given you didn’t answer your own _son_ in an _emergency_.”

Jango pauses, then turns on Rex. “Are you questioning me?”

“And if I was?” Rex knows he shouldn’t push it, but he’s feeling reckless. His father takes two dangerous steps towards him. Rex straightens up, clenching his jaw and trying not to glare.

“Then you’d better quit right now.”

A heavy silence passes between them, and Rex tenses, but in the next instant Jango turns and leaves without another word. When the door finally slams, and he hear the sound of Jango’s old pickup truck roaring to life, he breathes a sigh of relief. He doesn’t fight with his father often- it just isn’t worth it. Even though Rex is old enough, and strong enough, to take on Jango if need be, he doesn’t want to unless he has to. As long as Jango leaves them alone, and continues to perform the bare minimum, they can avoid trouble. Today, though, Rex is tired, and frustrated, and angry. And he has to get Hardcase to the doctor. 

Rex steps tiredly up the stairs, and gathers himself for a moment outside the twins’ and Jesse’s bedroom, where he hears Hardcase talking away. Despite the heaviness in his head, Rex smiles. Hardcase is spirited, if a little hyperactive- not that that’s bad. Rex tries not to think about bright, wide-eyed Hardcase facing the harsh reality of his family. He has to protect his brothers- he has to. 

As Rex pushes the door open, Hardcase lights up. “Is it time for the ‘mergency room?” Hardcase is with Kix on the bottom bunk to the doorway’s right- Echo’s bed, and Jesse is on his own twin size mattress across the room. 

“Slow down a second,” Rex laughs, “I haven’t even said hi to Jesse.” He sits down next to Jesse, pulling him into a side-hug with one arm. Jesse lowers his face, turning away from Rex. “Hey, ‘Case, Kix, go get yourselves ready for the doctor’s, yeah?”

“Alright!” Hardcase nearly runs into the frame of the bunk bed as he leaps up, Kix not far behind.

“Slow down with that arm!” Rex calls after him, and shakes his head. To Jesse, he says, “That kid, am I right?”

“Yeah,” Jesse replies noncommittally. 

“Hey, wanna talk about it? Did he do anything?”

Jesse shakes his head. “I’m just tired of walking on eggshells around him. I’m tired of being nervous in my own home.”

Rex nods. “I know, Jesse, I know.”

“What were you two talking about before he left?” Jesse finally turns to look at Rex, who turns his gaze to his feet in front of him.

“Told him what ‘Case’s school told me, which basically meant to put in half an ounce of effort as our guardian. But of course, he wouldn’t hear it.”

“Of course,” Jesse echoes bitterly. 

“I’ve got to take ‘Case to urgent care, and Kix is begging to come with, so…” Rex trails off. It’s not likely that Jango will return so soon, but it’s a concern nonetheless. “Fives and Echo will be home soon. Oh- I’ve got to call them once practice gets out. They can probably get a ride with Korkie, he’s a good kid. Or they can walk.” He pauses, then adds, “Sorry, thinking out loud.”

“S’fine. And I’ll be okay ‘til they get home.”

“Alright. You sure?”

“Yeah, that’s what I said, right?”

Rex shrugs. “Sure, but you’re welcome to come with us... We’re getting ice cream after. I guess I can bring some home for you guys.”

Chuckling, Jesse replies, “I’m not seven, Rex. But I won’t turn down what you bring home.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Rex stands, cracking a smile of his own. “Do your homework, okay?”

“Yeah, right.” Jesse rolls his eyes and waves Rex out. “Go get them before they start a fire.”

“Right. Well, see you soon.”

“See ya,” Jesse says, and Rex shuts the bedroom door and shuffles down the stairs. 

Kix and Hardcase are laughing about something, but they yell excitedly when they see Rex. “Time to go!” Hardcase exclaims.

“That’s right. Out to the car with you.” Rex smiles as he follows the boys out the door, locking the door behind him after once last glance up the stairs, in case Jesse changes his mind- he doesn’t. Soon enough, he’s pulling out of the driveway.

“Hey, Kix, ‘Case, I’ve gotta call the twins, hush for a minute.” He knows it’s not a good idea to use his phone while driving, but he’s stopped at a stop sign, and Echo is on his favorites list in his contacts. It’s no use trying to call Fives. Either his phone is on silent, or he ignores the call, usually, because Echo will pick up. 

Sure enough, Echo answers within a few rings. “Hey, Rex, where’d you go?”

“I’m taking ‘Case to urgent care and-”

Echo’s reply comes strong and suddenly. “You what? What happened?”

“Hey, it’s okay, he’s fine, just took a crash on the playground is all. His arm isn’t doing so good, and that’s why we’re going in.”

There’s a pause before Echo replies, “What’d Dad say?”

“Nothing, like always. Just kinda said ‘whatever’ and left.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah, um anyways, I can’t pick you up today, I’m sorry. Maybe ask Korkie for a ride.”

“Maybe yeah.”

“You gonna be okay? Jesse’s at home waiting.”

“Right, yeah, we’ll be fine.” 

Rex hears a muffled ‘Fives, you ask him- fine.’ Then, clearly, the phone shuffles, and Fives says, “Hey Rex.”

“Hey Fives, Echo tell you what’s up?”

“I heard you. Tell ‘Case to take it easy, yeah?”

“Can do. Oh, also, we’re getting ice cream on the way home, you two in?”

Fives laughs, “Sure thing.”

“Alright, well, you two be safe, okay?”

“Yeah, yeah. Catch ya later. Send a picture of ‘Case getting a cast will you?”

Now it’s Rex’s turn to laugh. “I will. Okay, uh, bye?”

“Yup, bye!” Fives ends the call, and Rex puts his phone in the center cupholder. 

To the youngest two, he says, “Thanks guys. Fives says to take it easy, ‘Case. We’re almost there okay?” Kix and Hardcase immediately erupt into a conversation that Rex tries to follow, with little success. 

Rex hasn’t been to urgent care in a long time, not since Fives had had a football accident in junior high, soon after his mother died. He’d never admit it, but Rex knows Fives used football as his outlet, pushing himself to his limits to make something else more painful than their family’s breakdown. Back then, Rex hadn’t been old enough to drive, and Jango had insisted that he stay home to watch over his brothers. No one else was allowed to come with. And no one asked when Fives came home with a cast, and a demoralized look on his face. None of them would ever be the same. 

When Rex guides the car into a parking spot at the local emergency care facility, he shakes himself out of his thoughts. It’s a race to keep up with and wrangle Kix and Hardcase, but they slow down once inside, their attention drawn by the toys in the waiting room. Rex lets them run off while he steps up to check in. 

The process is simple enough, and fifteen minutes later, a nurse calls for them. The brothers file into an examination room, following the nurse. After the routine initial questions, she leaves to call for the doctor, who appears momentarily.

He’s a short man with a friendly smile, and Rex looks to see how Hardcase is handling it, only to find him as eager as ever.

The doctor greets Hardcase cheerily, “So, I hear you had an accident on the playground?”

“Yeah! Hey if I get a cast can I still do recess?”

He chuckles. “We’ll have to see. I’d say that you’ll be able to go outside, but maybe we should stay away from climbing for a little bit.”

“Okay.” Hardcase nods, face serious. 

“Alright,” the doctor turns to Rex, “you’re his brother, I see.”

“I am,” Rex replies.

“Just making sure, it’s no problem. Parents can be busy these days.”

“We don’t have a mom,” Kix blurts, looking sheepish as Rex looks sharply at him.

The doctor smiles sadly. “I’m very sorry boys; that must be difficult.”

Rex nods. “Thank you for your concern, sir.”

“Of course. Now, I’m going to need to take a look at that arm, young man.” He gets up from the computer and moves to Hardcase’s side. After a series of tests, the typical ‘tell-me-when-it-hurts’ kind, he decides, “I can’t rule out a fracture, so we’ll need to do X-rays.”

“Like Galaxy Wars?” Hardcase asks excitedly. _Galaxy Wars_ is the boys’ favorite space-themed movie series.

“Not exactly,” the doctor laughs, “but it’ll still be fun. Why don’t you come with me for a moment?” To Rex, he adds, “We’ll be right back.”

“Can I come?” Kix asks timidly. 

Rex wraps his arm around him, starting to tell him ‘no,’ when the doctor says, “You know what? Sure, you can come. You’ll have to wait outside, though.”

It’s a dream come true for the youngest two- for Kix because of the medical equipment, and for Hardcase because of the mechanics and strange room, ‘like _Galaxy Wars_.’ A few minutes later, the pictures are developed, and they all meet back in the examination room.

“Well, it looks like there is a fracture on the radius,” the doctor concludes, pointing at a fissure in the image of Hardcase’s bone. “You’re getting a cast today.”

Hardcase cheers. True to his word, Rex snaps a photo of the cast-making process and sends it to the group chat he has with the twins and Jesse. Echo confirms that they made it home, and all three of them reply with variations of ‘awesome.’ In the next half an hour, the doctor lets the brothers leave, agreeing to pass the medical information to the school. 

As soon as they exit to the parking lot, Hardcase shouts, “Ice cream time!” The painkillers must be doing their job, because he hasn’t complained or slowed down once. 

“Yeah!” Kix joins the cheer. 

“You got it,” Rex says, loading them back into the car. One McDonald’s stop later, they’re finally home again. It’s getting late, Rex realizes. The August sun doesn’t set until later than seven-thirty, and it’s already sinking behind the horizon. 

Rex brings the drink carrier full of sundaes into the house, and calls, “Come and get it!”

Thumping on the stairs lets Rex know his call was heard. In the kitchen, Fives makes a show out of admiring Hardcase’s cast, insisting on being first to sign it, while Echo listens to Kix’s wild chatter about the X-ray machine. Jesse makes his way to Rex, nodding at their brothers and cracking a grin. Rex smiles back, handing him a sundae. 

And then, Rex realizes, “We haven’t even had dinner yet!”

Fives smiles with his sundae, and responds only with a ‘shhhh,’ drawing laughter from all of them. 

In the end, the brothers end up making sandwiches and mac ‘n cheese. After dishes, they each begin to disperse to their usual hangouts. Kix and Hardcase play games in the living room, Jesse retreats to his bedroom, the twins rotate spots often, and Rex takes the kitchen table to do his homework in order to be at the center of everyone, and to be the first one Jango sees if he enters from the front door, or from the mudroom jutting out from the kitchen. 

At eight-thirty, Rex sends Kix and Hardcase, one after the other, to shower and get ready for bed. The boys make their rounds, saying ‘goodnight’ to each brother, and Rex finally takes them upstairs to sleep. After that, the house becomes much more quiet, disrupted only by the twins’ conversation or a UTube video that Jesse watches, as he’s taken the living room. 

Rex steadily works on his homework. Jesse goes to bed at nine-thirty, and Echo follows him fifteen minutes later. Fives is always up later, having spent his ‘study’ time talking to Echo and getting nothing done. Eventually, around eleven, he too waves a goodnight to Rex and creeps up the stairs. Rex sighs, rubbing his temples and blinking away the exhaustion slowly settling on him like the way a bathtub fills. 

All of a sudden, for some reason, his mind jumps back to Ahsoka Kenobi- the awkward Economics class, and the heated berating on the stairs. He doesn’t really know what to think, which is why he refused to think about it. Now, though, his mind won’t let him forget it. 

Ahsoka has been around since as long as he’s been going to the schools in the area. She’s a good student, and friend, from what he’s picked up on over the years, but he had transferred in in the heat of a bullying campaign against her. Rex couldn’t stand to see it happen then, and as a result he’s feeling guilty for letting it happen now. 

Maybe he had hoped that in high school, people would be more mature, but apparently he was mistaken. But he had done his best to apologize the first moment he saw her on the stairs, and would have said more if it hadn’t been for Hardcase- that probably made him look like a jerk. _Dang it_ . He _should_ just forget it, but he _can’t_ . The way her bright blue eyes had glinted icily, the downturn of her lips as she had glared- all of it replays over and over again. _But there’s nothing he can do now_. Yeah, best to just forget it. 

Rex covers his face with his hands for a moment, and turns his attention back to the worksheet in front of him- Economics, of course. Somehow, he manages to get through it. He then makes his nighttime rounds: packing backpacks, packing a couple lunches for Kix and Hardcase, and plugging his phone in to charge. With the last bit of his energy, he trudges up the stairs to wash up in the bathroom, and slip quietly into his room, where the youngest are already asleep. As he drifts off to sleep, he hopes tomorrow goes much better than today.


	3. almost friends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ayoooooooooooo I'm back!!! School has UTTERLY been kicking me into the ground, and my job too :( but I managed to get a chapter done in the spare halves of hours I got- at midnight usually haha. Anyways, we are back to an Ahsoka POV on this one :) I didn't have high hopes for this chapter and was struggling to come up with ideas, but I really like how it turned out, and I hope you do too! And also, while I was struggling with writer's block for this chapter (so excuse the kinda abrupt ending- I'm really bad at ending chapters oof), I mapped out the next one so HOPEFULLY (fingers crossed) it won't take me as long to knock out chapter 4. Until then!
> 
> Edit: I've already found a couple mistakes... y'all I swear I reread for errors but as soon as I post they all start flashing sirens and beeping clown horns at me :/

Ahsoka’s alarm blares early the next morning. _Too early_ , she thinks miserably, until she remembers her promise to herself. Today, she _has_ to get to school early, to apologize, and hopefully salvage Rex’s opinion of her. Not that it matters what he thinks of her… it absolutely does. And so, with a steeled determination, Ahsoka attacks her morning routine. 

Rolling out of bed, she decides that since she washed her hair yesterday morning, she doesn’t have to today. Besides, it was in braids all day. She opts to take her hair out of the braids, letting it fall in small waves, and ties half of it up. Then, she returns to her room to throw on some school-acceptable attire. It would be wonderful to go to school in her maroon pajama pants with cats printed up and down them, but unfortunately people like Lux wouldn’t leave her alone. Ahsoka sighs, grabbing a pair of dark wash jeans and a dark red sweater. Once she pulls them on, she fixes her hair in the mirror above her desk, and leaves to grab breakfast.

Obi-Wan has taken to sleeping in main living space, on the couch that pulls out into a bed. It’s probably just so he can catch the other two sneaking out, not that they would. Or, it could be that he’s always up first anyways, so he doesn’t need his own uninterrupted space. Either way, he’s awake when Ahsoka finds him, sitting on the couch he’s already put back together, and adjusting the reading glasses that he finally got last year. They have simple, brown, rectangular frames- definitely Obi-Wan’s style. 

He looks up as Ahsoka walks in, taking off the glasses and greeting her with a simple, yet pleasant, “Good morning.”

Ahsoka doesn’t know how he does it without caffeine. Right now, she feels like she’s sleep-walking underwater, and she only got up twenty minutes earlier than usual. And then, she smells the coffee. “Mornin’, is that coffee?”

He looks reluctant as he answers, “Yes, but you really should be careful not to have too much.”

“I’m not ten anymore, and honestly I don’t think I’m growing much taller than this.”  
  


“The main concern is you developing a caffeine addiction at this age.”

“Eh, what’s the worst that could happen?” Ahsoka’s already taking a mug out. She doesn’t _always_ have coffee, and besides, she doesn’t _always_ get up this early. After she stirs in way too much creamer, she takes a long drink, and grins at Obi-Wan.

He shakes his head. “All I’m saying is to be careful.”

“Mhm,” Ahsoka manages through a sip of her drink.

Just then, Anakin stumbles into the kitchen, looking worse than Ahsoka, but that’s just the usual. If Ahsoka’s bad at mornings, then Anakin is just awful. Even still, he gets up to say goodbye to Ahsoka before she leaves for school- Obi-Wan drives her in the morning. His first classes don’t start for an hour after she leaves, so he’ll go back to bed for a while longer. 

“Hey, Snips-” Anakin calls her by his favorite nickname, gifted to her once she hit the ‘terrible teens-’ “you’re up early. What’s the occasion?”

Ahsoka shrugs sheepishly. “Just because.”

“Uh-huh. Sure.” Anakin narrows his eyes at her, and takes a seat at the kitchen table. Ahsoka’s bad at lying, but this morning she’s especially unconvincing.

She stares pointedly into her coffee mug, ignoring Anakin’s gaze. “I have to talk to someone.”

“Right. Does this have anything to do with the latest with a certain classmate?”

“Maybe?”

“Okay, fine by me. Just askin’.” 

Ahsoka quirks an eyebrow, and then squints her eyes an Anakin, who simply shrugs, and shoots a grin back at her. 

“Good morning to you too, Anakin,” Obi-Wan, who is now in the kitchen with them and sliding bread into the toaster, says with a bit of disappointment.

Anakin looks guilty, but says reassuringly, “Don’t worry, Obi, didn’t forget aboutcha, was just amazed to see ‘Soka up this early.”

Obi-Wan laughs, “I understand. Anyone else want toast, before I start the toaster?”

“Not me, I’m going back to bed,” Anakin answers. “”Soka?”

“Mm, no thanks. I’m good! Not real hungry at the moment.”

“Gotta eat something you know,” Anakin admonishes as he props one arm up to rest his head on. 

“I know, I know. In a minute.”

Eventually, she ends up eating some fruit. She then runs back to her room to pack her backpack, and throw the covers up on her bed- a halfway method of ‘making’ it. When she’s finally ready to leave, she gives Anakin a hug and joins Obi-Wan at the door.

Within a minute, she’s loaded up into the front seat of Obi-Wan’s car, a small, tan vehicle with no faults save for the small dent on the passenger door from an Anakin mishap. Ahsoka clicks her seatbelt in place and breathes in the scent of the air freshener- something like clean laundry or fresh fruit, which sharply contrasts the acrid smell of Anakin’s car. Ever so cautious, Obi-Wan never fails to check each mirror before putting the car in motion. On days when she’s late, it drives her crazy, but today, it’s comforting- a little endearing. She giggles as she watches his brow furrow in concentration.

Without taking his eyes off the road, Obi-Wan asks, “What’s so funny?”

“Nothing, you’re just really intense.”

Obi-Wan sighs. “I know, I am, aren’t I?”

“Hey, it’s not a bad thing, you know.”

“I know. I’m trying not to stifle you and Anakin, but I also feel responsible for you.”

Ahsoka nods. As much as she can roll her eyes and sigh at Obi-Wan’s protectiveness, she would never trade it for anything. “I know.”

The rest of the car ride passes in a comfortable silence. Ahsoka watches as the world outside the car rolls by, the same routine she’s watched since starting high school- even a little before, since Obi-Wan dropped Anakin off first at the high school before he had his own car. 

When Ahsoka finally sees the two-level brick building, her stomach drops for a moment. _What if she can’t find Rex in time? What if he’s with people?_ Her mind races with all the possible obstacles, both realistic and otherwise.

Obi-Wan’s voice snaps her out of her thoughts. “Alright, we’re almost to the door. Are you ready?”

“Um, yeah. I think.”

The cars in front of them expel their student passengers one after the other- mostly underclassmen, but Ahsoka isn’t embarrassed. _Does Rex drive to school?_ If he does, he’s likely going to enter from the opposite side of the building, where student parking is located. One more thing to think about. And he plays a sport- would he be stopping at the locker rooms with his football things? _Ugh, stop worrying, Ahsoka_.

And then, it’s her turn to hop out of the car. In one fluid motion, a move she’s practiced for years, she opens the car door, swings her backpack over her shoulder, and grabs the things that couldn’t fit in the bag- a textbook and her lunch bag. 

“Have a good day, okay?” Obi-Wan says, giving her a look that lets her know he means every word.

“Yeah, you too.” Ahsoka smiles and pushes the car door shut. Then, she turns on her heel and heads for the entrance. 

The drop-off entrance leads into the main atrium, with hallways splitting off in four directions. Directly ahead, is the auditorium and music rooms, while the right hall leads to art and tech labs. To the left is the hall that leads to the gyms, weight room, locker rooms, and the staircase to the exit nearest the school fields. The fourth hall splits diagonally to the left from the atrium, and leads to the library and the lower cafeteria. Most of the general classrooms are upstairs, except the foreign language area, which is by the art labs. The school’s layout makes it difficult to stay lost for very long, because most hallways connect, one way or another. 

Since her first class is economics, in the social studies area upstairs, Ahsoka habitually takes the staircase in the middle of the athletic hallway. Today, though, her path serves a second purpose, since she has a hunch that she can find Rex near the locker rooms, which are just past the staircase. Sure enough, she catches the side of his head- tanned skin and blonde hair, just as he steps through the door of the boys’ locker room. He’s not alone, though, she discovers miserably. That is, until she realizes it’s just the twins, Fives and Echo. _Still, would it be rude for her to interrupt them?_ She catches bits and pieces of their conversation: ‘ _wasn’t too upset,’ ‘glad it’s sorted out.’_ The conversation seems serious to her, and her resolve falters. Maybe if she just ducks into the staircase now, she won’t have to face him. 

Luckily, or unfortunately, she doesn’t have to make the decision herself. Rex notices her first, as he and his brothers are walking in her direction, and freezes. The twins stop with him, and Ahsoka quickly looks to the ground. _Come on, Ahsoka, now you just look weird!_ She forces herself to look at them again, and smile as genuinely as she can. One of the twins, probably Fives, glances curiously between his brother and her. She isn’t sure if the disaster of the day before has become common knowledge among the grades below hers. 

“Um, hey,” Ahsoka manages, mentally slapping herself for sounding so awkward. 

“Hey?” Fives elbows Rex in the arm, and then continues. “Okay, we’ll catch you later.” Fives motions for Echo to follow him, and soon they leave their brother alone with Ahsoka.

“Sorry!” Ahsoka blurts, “I didn’t mean to interrupt! I don’t- I just- I had something to tell you.”

She can see him tense for a moment, until he replies, “Sure? If it’s about yesterday I can-”

“No, let me go first,” she interrupts, hoping she doesn’t come across as rude. Taking a deep breath, she continues, “I want to apologize for how I acted yesterday. I was completely rude to you over a something that wasn’t your fault. And you looked really stressed out yesterday, so I’m sorry that I probably made things worse. I hope everything is okay- with whatever you had going on yesterday.”

Rex pauses, a stunned expression in his face. Ahsoka shifts her weight uncomfortably. Then, he lets out a sigh. “That’s… not what I was expecting, honestly. But, thank you. I’m sorry too-”

“Please don’t be,” she starts talking before she can stop herself. “I, I’m not sure if you’d remember, but, I guess it was right around when you transferred in, I was bullied a lot. I guess, old habits die hard, and I just got worked up because I was worried that it would happen again.”

“Hey, it’s okay, I understand. I’m just sorry I didn’t step in to defend you. I just, froze up.” Rex reaches for the back of his neck.

Ahsoka laughs, “Yeah, it was pretty out of nowhere, y’know? But I kind of just want to put the whole thing behind me.”

“Me too.” He puts his hand out, and says, “We on the same team now?”

Smiling softly, Ahsoka takes his hand with the one that’s not holding her textbook and lunch, and shakes it once. “Sure thing.” She looks up into his gentle smile, and forgets she’s still grasping his hand, holding on for more than a moment too long. And yet, it doesn’t seem like he minds, otherwise she would have snapped back into action sooner. His hand is calloused and strong, probably a result of football season, and it’s also warm, she realizes, since hers are always cold. 

The ringing of the four blasts that make up the five-minute warning bell sounding throughout the hallway finally puts them into motion. Ahsoka drops Rex’s hand, and asks, “Econ?”

He nods, flexing his hands once. She hopes in a throwaway thought that her palms weren’t sweating. “Yeah, that. Shall we?”

“Oh uh, sure! I have to stop at my locker in the English hall, though.”

“We’d better hurry then.” 

“Right, yeah.” Whatever Ahsoka was expecting, it wasn’t this. Rex actually plans on accompanying her to her locker, and then to class. Usually Ahsoka would meet Barriss in the band room, but she hopes her friend will understand the situation today. Trying to avoid an awkward silence, Ahsoka attempts to make conversation. “So, you get the homework done?”

Rex chuckles, “Ha, barely. Last night was hectic.”

“Oh, right, I forgot, you kinda ran off yesterday. Not that I blame you!”

“I know. My youngest brother broke his arm on the playground yesterday, so I had to pick up him and the other youngest from the elementary school, and take him into urgent care.”

Ahsoka looks at him in surprise as she opens her locker. “Wow, that’s crazy! I didn’t know you had that many brothers.”

“There’s six of us. Me, the twins, Jesse in eighth grade, Kix in fourth, and well, we call him Hardcase- he’s in kindergarten.”

“Really? That’s crazy! Your parents must have their hands full.” Ahsoka sneaks a glance at him again, trying to collect her books in one smooth gesture. Instead, she nearly drops everything in her hands, if not for Rex reaching out to help. The irony is not lost on her- given her last statement. “Thanks.”

“Yeah, no problem. And well, it’s just my dad. And he’s out a lot, working, or whatever. Most of the time it’s just me,” he replies. Ahsoka shuts her locker and they continue on.

“Oh, I- I shouldn’t have assumed, when I don’t even have parents myself- I’m sorry.”

Rex shrugs. “How could you have guessed? It’s fine. And I’m sorry for your loss, too.”

“Thank you. I never knew them. I live with my brothers; Obi-Wan adopted me when I was eight. And he was Anakin’s guardian when his own dad passed. Lots of loss of parents to go around, huh.” Rex lets out a laugh unexpectedly, and Ahsoka awkwardly laughs too. “Sorry, that was really harsh.”

“It’s fine; you’re right anyways.”

“Man, what a great thing to be talking about right before class on a Tuesday, huh?” Ahsoka says incredulously, trying to dispel the heaviness. 

“Right, well, I don’t even know where we started.”

“Well if you _really_ want to get technical, it was Mrs. Ti’s prophecy yesterday. But we forgot about that, right?”

“Absolutely.”

“Good. Anyways- wait, before we forget, are you okay with walking into the classroom together?” Ahsoka asks as they near their destination.

“Sure, why not?” He sounds genuinely confused, which catches her off guard. _Doesn’t he think about things like this?_

“Well, I mean in case you weren’t looking to catch some offhand comment about, y’know.” 

“I’m fine, and if someone says something to you about it, let me know so I can talk to them about it.”

Ahsoka laughs, “Alright, sounds good to me.” When they’re just feet from the class’s entrance, she adds, “See ya when I see ya?”

“Yeah. I’m glad we don’t have to awkwardly avoid each other for the rest of the year.”

Ahsoka’s heart flutters. “Um, right, yeah, well- we’re seniors for crying out loud! We’ve got to start doing adult things like conflict resolution _sometime_.”

“Couldn’t have said it better myself. See you around, Kenobi.” And with that, they step into the classroom. To Ahsoka’s dismay, Lux immediately spots them together, and lets out a whistle. She groans internally, and glares in his direction.

That is, until Rex calls out, “Jealous, Bonteri?”

Spluttering, Lux is caught completely off guard, and Ahsoka can’t help but giggle, shooting a grateful grin to Rex. He catches her eye and nods. Lux sinks into his seat, defeated, for now. Ahsoka takes her seat moments before the bell sounds. 

As usual, Ahsoka has a hard time paying attention to something as dull as economics. Unlike the usual, however, it isn’t because she’s falling asleep. Instead, she finds herself sneaking glances at Rex, well, the back of his head at least, from her perspective. He has good posture, she realizes, and instinctually straightens up herself. That is, until she remembers that she’s exhausted, and slumps back down again. 

Ahsoka isn’t sure how much time has passed since she zoned out, but she’s sure she will struggle on the homework tonight due to her lack of attentiveness. She blinks a few times, and tries to figure out what Mrs. Ti is explaining. This class could not be over soon enough.

Sure enough, however, it does come to an end. One five-minute passing period later, band begins. She’s just beginning warmups as the room begins to fill with the clamor of scales, and pop tunes, when Mrs. Unduli seeks her out.

“Ahsoka, could you meet me in my office for a moment?” Her heart skips a few beats, and she scours her memory for the saxophones’ recent marching mistakes. They weren’t doing _that_ bad, were they? “You’re not in trouble, of course. The saxophone section this year is the best that I’ve seen in a long time.” 

Sighing in relief, Ahsoka hops up from her chair, and carries her instrument with her into the music offices that separate the band and choir rooms. She slides the door until it’s open just a crack, and Mrs. Unduli begins to explain.

“So, let me start by apologizing. I’m sorry that this is so last minute.” Ahsoka raises an eyebrow in question, at a loss for what the teacher could be talking about. “But, should you choose, and I am truly hoping you accept, the national anthem is yours to sing this year.”

Her stomach drops and she feels her eyes widen. _Singing the anthem, like at the games? In front of the crowd- Rex?_ “I, wow. Um, yeah that is not what I was expecting to hear.” Ahsoka laughs nervously. “But how? Me? Why? I thought you had to audition?”

“We always let a senior have the opportunity, and while auditions are held as a formality, it’s really the music department’s choice. I understand you didn’t audition but myself and Mr. Fisto really feel that you are the best choice. You represent the best of both worlds in our department, and we think that’s a strong message to send to the community.”

“Wow. Thank you. I just, I don’t know. That’s a lot to think about. All those people-”

“You’ve performed solos for concerts before, this isn’t much different.”

_Choir parents are not football parents_ . _And band parents. And alumni. And the entire student body practically._ But sure, same concept. “Still, I don’t know…”

“No one’s forcing you, but I think that this is a great opportunity to add to your resume for colleges. You are still going into music?”

She has a point. A major musical responsibility is not something she can easily turn down, since she’s looking for musical scholarships. “Well, it couldn’t be _that_ hard, right? I’m taking it seriously of course!”

“Of course, I know you will. Can I see you during your study period to practice?”

“Oh, yeah! That works.”

“Perfect. Well, that’s all I had for you, keep up the good work with the saxophones.”

Ahsoka nods while a smile works its way across her face. Mrs. Unduli writes her a pass for study period, and in a moment she rejoins the rest of the band.

\---------

Study period is Ahsoka’s final ‘class’ of the day, which turns out to be awfully convenient. She can take a few extra minutes to practice before joining the rest for marching rehearsal. The unfortunate side effect, however, is that she loses track of time, and when she finally emerges into the main band room, everyone is already gone. She practically runs through the halls, and then stops. Mrs. Unduli knows where she is, and would certainly forgive a few minutes. 

When she heads down the same beige hallway plastered with athletic and school spirit posters, where the scent of sweaty shoes mixed putridly with bad aerosol deodorant smothers her nose, she spots Rex coming out of the locker room, and calls, “Hey, aren’t you going to be late for football?”

Rex looks over his shoulder in surprise, then shrugs and replies, as he falls into step beside her, “Could say the same for your band stuff.”

“At least my director knows where I was.”

“Which was…”

“It’s a secret.” Ahsoka grins, as Rex’s head tilts to one side.

“Really.”

“Yup. Can’t say.” She doesn’t actually have to keep it a secret, but she hasn’t told Riyo or Barriss yet, so she figures she might as well leave everyone in suspense. 

“Huh. Alright. How are you feeling about that econ homework?”

“Ugh, don’t remind me. That class is a nightmare for me, I just don’t get it.” As they near the door, Rex steps ahead to pull it open for the both of them. 

“‘Cause you’re always asleep?”

“Thanks, by the way, but how would you know? You sit in front of me.” Rex nods a ‘you’re welcome.’

“Doesn’t mean I stare straight in front of me for forty five minutes.”

“I guess. You’re so lucky that you actually understand what’s going on.”

“I mean, you would too if you worked at it.”

“I know, I know. It’s just super confusing, and boring, and I just can’t make myself do it.”

“Well, I’d help you, if you wanted.”

Ahsoka raises her eyebrows as she says, “Really?”

Rex shrugs. “Don’t see why not.”

“Ha, you might end up regretting that offer,” she laughs.

“Well, that’s for me to figure out, I guess.”

They’re halfway across the parking lot when Ahsoka gasps and stops in her tracks. “I forgot to refill my water!” 

“Oh, let’s go back then.”

She grabs her saxophone to steady it as she starts to dash back towards the school. Rex keeps pace with her. “Aren’t you going to be late for practice?”

“And you’re late for band. You can’t be talking.”

She catches her breath as Rex swings the door open for her, following her inside. The chill of the air conditioning causes goosebumps to appear along her arms. There’s a reason she doesn’t wear t-shirts for classes. “Sure, but you don’t have to come with me to get _my_ water.”

“Eh, it’s hot today, kinda don’t want to be out there for longer then I have to.”

“You say as you just sprinted across a parking lot with me.”

“I, well-” Rex reaches for the back of his neck and continues- “I don’t know. The coach is kind of a nightmare.”

“Oh, I’ve heard the stories. Which is why I’m really worried that you’re going to be late!”

“I can take care of myself.”

“Well, maybe not, if you’re going to make a decision like this. You’re the captain, aren’t you? Shouldn’t you be responsible?”

“Look, I’m not really looking to argue with you. I’ll be fine, okay?”

“Sorry, I just, I don’t know. It’s weird to even be talking to you.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You know- we’re like that Taylor Swift song, okay? I’m on the bleachers, wearing t-shirts, whatever. I just never saw myself talking to someone like you.”

“And why not? You’re doing it now.”

“Yeah, duh, but I just never would have, if not for that stupid joke.”

“I guess. Well, that’s one good thing to come from that joke, then.”

“Really? You’re okay with this?”

“I didn’t realize you were on a different page about it, sorry. I kinda thought we were almost friends.”

“Well, I’m okay with it, I was just worried about your reputation or something. I just don’t want to mess anything up for you.”

“Let me worry about that.”

“Right. Well, see you later then?”

“Sure thing.”

Rehearsal starts without a problem, as Mrs. Unduli knows that Ahsoka was in the practice rooms, singing, at least that’s what she was _supposed_ to be doing, before Rex caught up with her. It’s now the second day in a row that she’s gone to rehearsal still confused by him. She had him down as someone who takes his responsibilities seriously, so it’s puzzling that he would be so seemingly frivolous with his time. Then again, he did have a tough day yesterday, from what she picked up, so maybe he just wanted a break. But then- why follow her around, of all people? Why not just hide in the locker room? He had said that he considers them friends, so maybe that’s why. Everything’s happening so fast, and all of it races through her mind as she walks out to the field to take her mark for the next set. 

Thanks to the drills, she doesn’t have to think about it again, until finally she’s waved goodbye to Riyo and Barriss, and has taken up her usual spot outside the athletic doors to wait for Anakin. He usually takes about twenty minutes to get to the high school from his classes. Obi-Wan works until six today- on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so he doesn’t pick her up. Besides, he drives her in the mornings. 

Half following in their uncle Plo’s footsteps, Obi-Wan went into grief counseling. He was already through college and settled into his job at the local counseling services facility when he adopted her, and his knowledge of counseling has come to her aid on more than one occasion. It certainly made getting through the bullying in middle school a lot easier, once she realized she could reach out for help. Ahsoka couldn’t imagine him doing anything else with his comforting personality. He’s always been the strength and stability of their odd family. 

Lost in thought, Ahsoka doesn’t realize who’s behind her until he says, “Long time no see?”

She whips around, startled, but smiles to see- “Rex! And yeah, long time no see, huh. You guys are out late today.”

“Correction- _I_ am out late.”

_Duh_ , she mentally chides herself. Hadn’t she just watched all the other football guys shuffle past her fifteen minutes ago? “Oh. So you were late.”

“It’s no big deal. Besides, after missing practice yesterday, I kind of needed the extra laps.”

“Not sure that that’s how it works,” Ahsoka laughs. Not that she would know. But she’s played sports before, and she’s paid enough attention in health class to know how exercise works.

“It’s nice to think about it that way though.”

Still laughing, she replies, “Yeah, maybe.”

After a pause, Rex adds, “Oh, right! You still want help with econ?”

Ahsoka tilts her head to one side. “You were serious about that?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

“If you say so! So uh, how do you want this to work.”

“I was just going to give you my phone number in case you wanted to ask a question later.”

“Oh, sure!” Ahsoka whips a cell phone out of her back pocket, taps the screen a couple times, then holds it out to Rex. She’s opened up to a new contact, so he enters his number and hands the phone back to her. “Thanks!”

“Not a problem.”

The familiar low rumble of Anakin’s car distracts Ahsoka. “Oh, that’s my brother,” she says as she grabs her backpack from the ground. “I’ll… see you tomorrow? Or, talk to you later maybe?”

“Sounds good to me. Later.” Rex puts a hand up in goodbye and turns to go. Ahsoka watches him for a moment before stepping to get in the car with Anakin.

Right away, Anakin asks, “That’s that Rex kid, right?”

“Yep,” Ahsoka replies, tossing her backpack into the backseat and pulling on her seatbelt. 

“What did he want?”

“What do you mean?”

“Didn’t mean it that way. What were you guys talking about?”

“Oh, I, well, I guess it’s a long story. Basically, this morning, I ended up apologizing for being really cold with him yesterday. And then we just kinda kept talking and I complained about econ at one point, so he offered to help me if I needed it, so he gave me his number.”

“Dang, I need to take notes.”

“Anakin! It’s not like that. He’s just being friendly.”

“Mmhm.” Ahsoka shoots him a glare, and he adds, “Just messing with you, you know. Glad you made a friend instead of an enemy.”

“Me too,” she sighs. “Honestly, I’m glad we talked about it. It’s way less awkward now.”

“I’m glad to hear it.”

“He even shut Lux down for me in class. Shoulda seen the look on his face.”

“Wish I could’ve. But if I ever see his face, I think I won’t be able to stop myself from throwing punches.”

“You’re like, four years older than him.”

“So? I’ll hit a child for you.”

“Well, he’s not a child anymore. So it’s a shorter sentence.”

“Even better.”

“Ookay.”

“So. Yesterday you were complaining about Rex being way out of your league and now you’ve got his number-”

“For school!”

“Whatever. I’m just glad my advice worked. Obi-Wan’s not the only counselor in the house!”

“Yeah, sure,” Ahsoka laughs.

The two continue to chat about anything and everything. Anakin relates a story of his latest mishap in his auto repair class, and Ahsoka tells Anakin about singing the anthem on Friday.

“Snips, really? That’s incredible!”

“I’m really nervous. There’s always a _ton_ of people at the games.”

“And you’ve got an incredible voice, no need to worry. Just shut it all out, y’know?”

“Yeah, I know.”

“Oh, this means Obi-Wan and I will have to make plans to see you!”

“I’ll have to be there early, so I’ll need to borrow Obi-Wan’s car again this year.”

“That’s fine, I’ll drive us in my car. We wouldn’t miss it.”

“Thank you, you guys really are the best.”

\------------

Later that afternoon, Ahsoka finds herself unfortunately stuck on an economics concept. She glances at her phone, knowing she could message Rex about it, and yet, she hesitates. _What if he’s busy?_ He does have five brothers, but then again if he _is_ busy then he would just reply when he could. _What’s the worst that could happen?_ Ahsoka reaches for her phone, and opens up a new message.

**A: Hey, it’s Ahsoka! I’m kinda stuck on number six lol**

She stares at the screen for a few moments, then sets it back down next to her, deciding to skip the difficult problem until she gets a reply. Her heart skips a beat when the phone buzzes a minute later. 

**R: Yeah that one is tough. What’s confusing you about it?**

Ahsoka takes a deep breath, and rereads the problem again.

**A: Honestly, I don’t remember Mrs. Ti explaining this at all**

**R: Spacing out again?**

**A: ... yeah**

**R: It’s… hard to explain over a message, but I’ll try**

Feeling like her heart is going to stop at any moment, Ahsoka thinks twice about her idea. If it’s hard to write out, then maybe they could video call. She doesn’t exactly know how he wants this friendship to work, but she’s pretty sure no one video calls a friend on the first day of having their number. Then again, it is a unique situation. _Oh whatever_ , she decides to just go for it.

**A: I could video chat you if that makes it easier?**

**R: That would work better yeah**

She glances quickly around her room, making sure that nothing is too messy or embarrassing. She runs her fingers through her hair a few times, and plugs her headphones in. With a shaking thumb, Ahsoka presses the video chat button, and tries to set up the phone at a decent angle. 

Rex answers within a couple rings. He has headphones in as well, and the camera is angled so Ahsoka can see the table in front of him with his books and papers.

“Hey, thanks for helping me,” she says.

“It’s no trouble, calling will probably be more helpful anyways.”

“Yeah, so, um, number six?”

“Right, yeah.” Rex goes on to explain what she missed in class. It shouldn’t be a surprise, but Ahsoka is still impressed at how well he can articulate difficult concepts. Then again, he has five younger brothers and is captain of the football team, so leading is probably something he has a lot of experience with. 

For the next half hour or so, they continue to work, periodically comparing answers. After a while, Ahsoka checks the time, and jumps, _5:00_. Obi-Wan would be home soon.

“Oh! I have to make dinner tonight. I almost forgot.” she practically jumps out of her desk chair and grabs the phone. “I’ll just take you with me, if that’s okay?”

“Fine by me.” A glance at her phone shows Rex still focused on the worksheet in front of him, pencil scratching something out. 

“Oh, I mean I don’t want to assume you wanted to stay on. If you’re busy, I understand.”

“Nah, it’s fine. I’m just working on homework. Now that you mention it though, I should make dinner, too.”

Once in the kitchen, she opens the refrigerator and scans its contents. “Oh, okay! I’m good to stay if you are.”

“Sounds good to me. What are you making?”

“Sorry, this is a bad angle.” She flips the camera to show him the refrigerator, and sees him squinting to see his screen. “I’m not sure what I’m making yet. We don’t really do meal plans, so I’ll see what I can do. What about you?”

Rex turns his camera to show her his refrigerator, an old white model from a few decades ago- the kind that last forever but upper middle class families will replace anyways. It’s like her apartment’s refrigerator, except hers is black. “I’m not sure either, but I think we have some ground beef somewhere so maybe I’ll do something with that.”

Ahsoka nods, “That sounds good. Oh no!”

“What’s up?”

“There’s chicken in the freezer! I should’ve been defrosting it for hours now.”

“Can’t you microwave it?”

“Really?”

“Yeah, defrost button is a life-saver.”

“I really feel like an idiot now.”

“Well, some people are weird about microwaving things, so I don’t blame you.”

“Oh no, you wouldn’t believe the stupid things me and my brother have tried to microwave. That’s how Anakin got his kitchen privileges revoked. That, and when he lit something on fire in the oven,” she replies as she unwraps some chicken to defrost it. She sets the phone on the counter, glancing at it every few seconds. 

Rex sounds like he’s holding back laughter. “That’s… not good?”

Ahsoka giggles lightly, “Yeah, no kidding. Anyways, thanks for the tip. And we’ve got frozen vegetables too! Score!” 

“No problem, and yeah, I’ve found some stuff too. I have pretty much everything for tacos, but no shells. Can’t have it all, I guess,” he sighs. 

“Tacos sound really good. But if you’ve got any kind of corn or tortilla chip, you can do nachos.”

“That’s… a good idea. I think we still have something.”

“I’ve tried it with nacho cheese chips before, that was really good.”

“Yeah that does sound interesting.”

“You can just say it’s weird,” she laughs.

“Nah, that’s not what I meant.”

The two continue to chat about cooking and kitchen mishaps. While the chicken defrosts, Ahsoka decides to make chicken tenders. As the call goes on, she finds herself feeling more and more like his friend. The easy conversation flows naturally, like something between old friends. She hardly notices how much time passes, until Obi-Wan walks in the door. She still has headphones in, but the door shutting makes a vibration she can pick up through the floor.

Not to mention, Obi-Wan also calls, “Hey, Ahsoka. Thanks for getting dinner going.”

Ahsoka can’t touch her phone to mute herself while she’s battering the chicken strips, so she quickly explains to Rex, “My brother’s home, one sec.” To Obi-Wan, she replies, “Hey, no problem. How was work?”

“Same as always. Who’s on the phone?” He juts his chin upwards as he inquires. 

“Friend from school, Rex Fett.” She cringes knowing Rex can hear everything she and Obi-Wan are saying. Not that she’s saying anything wrong, simply knowing she has to talk about him, in front of him, makes her anxious.

“I see. I’ll leave you to it?”

“Uh, sure! Dinner will be done… I have no idea when. Not super long, though.”

“Alright, I’m going to check in on Anakin.”

“Cool, see ya!” Ahsoka throws a grin in his direction, and he nods and waves. Then, she speaks to Rex again. “Sorry my hands are messy otherwise I could’ve muted.”

“It’s no big deal, nothing to be sorry about I think. Family is family, don’t have to ignore ‘em for my sake.”

“Yeah, are your brothers home?”

She spots Rex glance away, before he responds, “Yep, they’re here.”

“If you didn’t have headphones in I’d say hi.”

“Ahsoka says hi, you guys.” She can’t stop a laugh as she hears a few muffled greetings in response.

“Thanks.”

“And, hello to your brothers too.”

“I’ll let them know when they’re around again. Anakin is probably working on another project, and Obi-Wan just left to talk to him.” 

“It’s all good.” The two of them fall silent, Ahsoka intently lining the chicken pieces up on the tray for the oven. She can hear some clanging and frying, and general chatter in the background of the call. After a few minutes, Rex speaks up. “So, it’s looking like I’m just about done over here.”

“Oh! I’ll let you go then! Thanks for everything, and for staying on this long, you didn’t have to.”

“Nah, it was fun, thanks for calling.”

“Sure! Um, you’re going to have to hang up, I’m kinda a mess over here.” She waves a messy hand at the camera and grins.

Rex laughs, “Alright, well, see you tomorrow?”

“As far as I know, yep! See ya!”

“Sounds good. Bye!”

Ahsoka nods, and catches his smile on her screen before he end the call. She sighs, a grin lingering on her face for a moment before she frowns once more in concentration.

Twenty-five minutes later, the smell of the baking chicken draws Anakin out of his room. “Something smells good. Snips, whatcha makin?”

“Chicken strips,” Ahsoka replies simply, setting her phone down on the kitchen table. “Oh, and frozen vegetables, which I should be throwing in the microwave right about now.” She hops up from the table, grabs the bag of vegetables out of the freezer, and pours some into a tupperware which she sets in the microwave to heat up. Anakin watches her with a small smile, knowing he isn’t allowed to help in the kitchen if not asked to. After a moment, Ahsoka notices the look on his face. “What’s up with you?”

“Heard you were on a call with someone from school.”

“I was, yeah,” she answers slowly, studying his reaction.

“So… what’s up?”

“Well, we were working on homework, you know, then I said I had to make dinner and offered to hang up, but then he had to make dinner too, so we just kinda stayed on.”

“Oh nice, what’s he making?”

“Nachos I think, well, it was supposed to be tacos but he didn’t have any shells.”

“Makes sense.”

“Yeah, so, um. You wanna get Obi-Wan? Dinner’s ready.”

“Sure thing!”

Ahsoka smiles to herself as she sets everything out, and her brothers file back into the kitchen. When they’re all seated, Obi-Wan and Anakin drift into some discussion she can’t follow, because she’s let her mind wander. She tries to imagine what Rex’s brothers look like. She’s seen the twins, sure, but he has three more besides. The twins look a lot like Rex, even though he has blond hair and they don’t, so maybe the other three also do? She had heard a couple of high-pitched yells during the call, which makes sense because Rex _had_ said the youngest is in kindergarten. 

She hardly realizes she hasn’t eaten until Obi-Wan cuts into her thoughts. “‘Soka, it’s very good, aren’t you going to eat?”

Ahsoka blinks once, then again as she shakes her head. “Yeah, sorry, just got lost in thought.”

Anakin chuckles, and she casts a warning glare at him. Silently, he raises his hands in mock surrender. Then, he changes the subject. “So, Ahsoka has news for you, Obi-Wan.”

“Oh?”

Ahsoka tilts her head. “I do?”

“Friday?”

That sparks her memory. “Oh! I do! Obi, guess what?”

“What is it?” Obi-Wan responds through a bite of food.

“I get to sing the anthem this season for the football games.”

“That’s exciting! I’m very proud of you.”

“Anakin said you guys would come and see me this Friday.”

Obi-Wan nods. “Of course. I wouldn’t miss it.”

“Yeah, we’ll be there, Snips,” Anakin adds. 

Ahsoka grins. Friday couldn’t come soon enough. 


	4. bro talks, and game day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y'all!! Thank you so so so much for all the support- I never thought I'd get nearly as much support as I have been, it's been so cool! As I've said in the tags, I really am going to have slow, and irregular updates on this. It's not what I'd prefer, but I really am at the mercy of life right now. Luckily, with the holidays, I get a bit of a break, and so, that's why I have this chapter the I finished now two minutes ago, at the time that I'm writing these notes! Hope everyone's having a wonderful holiday season!!
> 
> And, again, disclaimer: haha I have no beta reading on this so if there's mistakes, I'm so very sorry. half the time I'm writing past midnight, ha! Sorry it's a bit dialogue heavy in the beginning.

Rex turns to go, his heart pounding faster than it had during those ladder sprints Krell had forced him to run again and again as punishment for being late. This day had certainly not gone how he had expected. 

Once he makes it to the car, he slides into the driver’s seat. Fives and Echo are already waiting, and the former has an amused grin on his face.

Rex sighs and rolls his eyes. Better let him get it out of his system.

“That’s the girl from this morning, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, and?”

“You know what.”

“You are impossible.” Rex rolls his eyes. Sure, he loves his brothers more than anything, but sometimes they can be such, well, _brothers_. He briefly wonders how the family would be different if they had a sister. 

“Saw her give you her phone, you know.”

Rex rolls his eyes again, fighting a blush. “You guys are total creeps.”

From the back seat, Echo exclaims, “Hey! That was Fives. _I_ don’t care who you decide to hang out with.”

“Well, I hope she’s not the type to get scared off by five brothers,” Fives says as Rex starts the car, and pulls out of the parking space.

Echo sighs, “Fives, we’re all younger than her, I don’t think we’re that intimidating.”

“I’d be scared of a girl with five brothers!” Fives argues.

“It’s different for a girl, knowing a guy has five brothers. Not like we’re gonna beat her up or something.”

“How does she know?”

“Fives, are you _seriously_ telling me you’d punch that girl?”

“I’d punch a girl for Rex!”

“For the record- it’s not like that, so you guys don’t have to worry,” Rex interjects, before Fives gets carried away. 

“Yet,” Fives says smugly.

“Oh shut up, Fives,” Echo exclaims. “It’s Rex’s business, anyways.”

“Sure, until he brings her home. Then it’s our business too.”

Rex sighs, “Like I said, you guys don’t have to worry about that anytime soon.”

“Come on, you’re not saying you don’t like her?”

“I’m not saying anything, especially if you’re going to be like this about it.”

Echo adds, “All I’m going to say is I trust Rex to have his head on straight about things, so I’m not worried.”

“Thanks, Echo.”

Fives admits, “Well, I agree. But I still find it weird. You’ve hardly ever talked to any girl before. And now you’re all of a sudden friends with Ahsoka Kenobi? I’m just wondering how it happened.” 

Rex remembers he hasn’t told them about the Econ incident, and decides to leave that for another time. “Why does it matter so much?”

“You’re my brother! Not saying you have to tell us right now, but can I just ask that you give us a heads up if you’re going to ask her out? At least let her meet us first?”

“Of course I’ll let you guys meet her first. But don’t get all worked up, I hardly know her.”

“But- oh whatever. You do you.”

“Thank you. I can take care of myself.”

“I know you can. Just wanna help if you need it.”

Echo chimes in, “Yeah, he’s got a point. Y’know, as cheesy as it sounds, you can talk to us whenever.”

“I’ll… keep that in mind, thanks.”

Fives then changes the subject, asking Rex how the extra laps went. “Yeah also, why were you late?”

The intersection into their neighborhood is difficult to navigate, so Rex hardly hears his question. “Say that again?”

“Why were you late to practice? Y’know, Krell is going to make someone else captain one of these days. And you know you’re the only one that can pull it off.”

“I was… talking.”

Fives pauses, his thought process clearly written on his face as he knits his eyebrows, then widens his eyes. Then, he says, “To that girl, weren’t you?”

Rex sighs, “You got it.” For all his joking, Fives hides a sharp mind behind his grins. 

“Really, Rex, I wanna agree with Echo here, but are you _sure_ you’ve got your head on straight about her?”

Echo adds, “Yeah… I might be with Fives on this one. You skipped practice for her?”

Rex decides that he really had better explain everything, right after he parks the car in the driveway. He turns to his right, to get a better look at the twins. “You guys really haven’t heard about what went down in my Econ class?”

“No? Wait.” Fives sounds like he’s choking on his next few words. “That was you- and, her?”

“Yeah, it was.”

“So you... and her? It’s- you’re not doing this for the joke, are you?”

“No, I think we’re actually friends now?”

Again, Echo interjects, “You don’t sound sure.”

“Yeah well, when I was talking to her before practice, she said she felt like, nervous or something, talking to someone like me.”

Fives nods solemnly in understanding. “Yes, the Taylor Swift syndrome. T-shirts and bleachers.”

“How do you- she brought up that same song.”

“Of course she did! It’s a classic! You really should give it a listen sometime.”

“Why- you know what? I’m not going to ask. Anyways, I told her I thought we could be friends, and she seemed to be okay with that.”

“Mhmm. She let you give her your number, didn’t she?”

“It’s not like that.”

“Not yet.”

Rex sighs, shaking his head. “Right, sure.”

“Come on, you like her, don’t you?”

He feels his heart skip a beat. That can’t be a good sign. _Does he like her?_ There’s no way. It’s only been a day, and he barely knows her. Sure, he finds her interesting, funny, and if he’s really honest, pretty cute, but he can’t say for certain that he _likes_ her likes her. “Not… yet.”

“What does that even mean?”

“I don’t know? You said it yourself, I’ve never talked to girls before. And this is _really_ weird to be discussing with you.”

“He has a point!”

“Thanks, Echo. But Rex, what do you mean, not yet?”

“I don’t know, I’ve only been talking to her for one day. So yeah, I think she’s nice, but I’m not ready to think about whether I like her, like that.”

Fives pauses, then shrugs. “I guess.”

“She seemed pretty cool to me this morning,” Echo begins, then stops and interrupts his own train of thought. “Wait, so how many times have you guys talked today?”

“Three. Before and after school, and after practice.”

“None of those are accidental, you know. I won’t believe any excuse from you,” Fives says with intensity.

“I know that. She came and found me this morning, and then after school, well okay I wasn’t _expecting_ to see her, but I kinda waited a little, hoping I’d see her, since I did yesterday. And then after practice I went to give her my number.”

Echo nods. “I respect that.” 

“So, you guys happy? Because we should be checking on the little guys. Jesse’s fending for himself in there.”

“Well, alright. Just, keep us in the loop I guess,” Fives concedes.

Rex laughs, and the three of them start to get out of the car. “Only if you promise not to be weird about it.”

“Since when have _I_ been weird about it?” Echo asks indignantly, as Rex grabs his backpack out of the trunk. 

“You know who I’m talking to, Echo.”

Fives looks between his brothers. “Look, I can’t have any fun at all? That’s a brother’s job!”

“I guess, just, I don’t know. You know what I meant.”

“I guess,” Fives repeats. Rex unlocks the front door and swings it open, and shrieks sound from upstairs. In a split-second, or so it seems, Kix and Hardcase come stomping and giggling down the stairs. 

“Woah there ‘Case, slow down with that cast!” Echo says right before the boy jumps into his barely-ready arms. 

“I’m fine!” Hardcase insists, waving the cast arm for extra emphasis.

Rex chuckles, and heads up the stairs to Jesse’s room. He seems to be doing okay, since their father has yet to be seen at home. It’s fairly unusual for him to be gone for this long in the middle of the week, but then again, his jobs keep strange hours in addition to all the time he spends drinking. 

Soon enough, the brothers settle into their afternoon routine, and Rex finds himself thinking about Ahsoka with his number. He checks his phone every couple of minutes, even though he knows he has the ringer on. 

Just when he puts the phone down for what seems like the 50th time, it chirps enthusiastically. _It’s her_. And she wants him to explain… number six, which will be almost impossible to type out in a coherent way. 

That is, until she suggests a video call. _That… works_. Hurriedly, he digs through his backpack for his headphones, and calls out to Fives and Echo in the living room, “I’m calling someone, so if the little guys need anything, can you help?”

“Is it… her?” Fives asks slowly, reading Rex as easily as ever. 

Rex pauses, until he hears the chime of his ringtone again. “Yes, and that’s her so, talk to you later.”

“Sure thing.”

Talking to her is less difficult than he imagined. For all her complaining about being less cool than him, not that it mattered to him anyways, she knows how to make conversation- something he isn’t very good at at all. Sure, he finds her easier to talk to than most, but this has been… an exception to say the least. His chronic inability to start conversations paired with his serious attitude towards school and sports has given him a reputation of being standoffish, which, now that he’s thinking about it, is probably the reason Ahsoka found talking to him weird. 

By the time he hangs up, it’s already dinner time, so Fives has no time to interrogate him. Rex is almost relieved. He can’t deny that it was completely awkward to know that they were probably listening to every word. Still, it was nice to hear her voice again, and it made dinner prep a little less irksome. 

After the impossible task of getting Hardcase to eat without ruining his cast by dragging it through some stray chip dip, and convincing Jesse to _just try_ the black olives, the day is just about over. Before he goes to bed, Rex finally gets a chance to save Ahsoka’s number. He considers, just for fun, saving her as ‘future wife’ in reference to the econ joke, but figures that that would be setting himself up for disaster. In the end, he decides against it, and simply enters “Ahsoka.” Adding a last name would be too formal, after all. 

The rest of the week seems to fly by. Between herding his brothers everywhere, catching up with Ahsoka between classes and before and after school, football practice, studying with Ahsoka, the only time he doesn’t have something on his mind is when he’s asleep. When he wakes up on Friday, he does a double-take. _Game day, duh_. They had just discussed at practice that for the home game they’d wear jerseys to school that days. At least it saves him time picking out what to wear, not that he spends much more time on any other day. 

He’s putting down bread in all four slots in the toaster when Fives trudges into the kitchen with a yawn. Fives has never been a morning person, unlike his twin and Rex. Rex suspects that the only reason he’s up without much persuasion today is because it’s game day- the first game of the season, and his first varsity game. Right now, though, Fives pulls a chair out at the kitchen table and buries his face in his arms.

“Ready to go for tonight?” Rex chuckles, only to receive a disgruntled groan in return. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

“‘M tired,” Fives complains, turning his face to the side to peer at Rex while he rests.

“You’ll wake up. Or I’ll get some ice from the trainer and pack it down your jersey.”

“You wouldn’t,” he pouts.

“Maybe not as a brother. But as your captain? Absolutely.”

As he steps into the kitchen, Echo asks, “What are we doing?”

“Waking Fives up.”

“By putting ice in my jersey!”

Echo laughs, “I’m in.”

“You both are awful!”

Rex shakes his head. The snappy sound of the toaster spitting up the crisped bread comes to Fives’s rescue, as Rex changes the subject, “You guys want toast?”

“Oh heck yeah,” Fives breathes, eliciting a round of incredulous laughter from Echo and Rex.

“What the heck was that?” Rex manages. 

As he grabs peanut butter out of the pantry, Fives explains, “What? I’m on my toast trip for the year, and nothing else can bring me happiness at the moment.”

Echo shrugs. “Fair enough.” He and Rex burst back into laughing.

Once he’s able to control himself again, Rex decides it’d be best to check on Kix and Hardcase. They don’t have to wake up as early as the twins and himself, because the elementary school starts a bit later, and Jesse sees them to the bus stop. However, Rex still needs to make sure that Jesse, the other not-morning-person, gets up. 

Sure enough, he finds the youngest two already up and standing in Jesse’s room, trying to stifle laughter as their brother remains asleep. Rex flips on the lights and calls, “Time to get up!”

Jesse grunts and tugs his blanket over his eyes, but Kix and Hardcase spring into action. In a flurry of motion and giggles, they pounce on Jesse, repeating Rex’s instructions. Rex almost feels bad for him- but then again, the youngest are Jesse’s soft spot. The last time Rex had tried to wake Jesse up himself, he’d gotten kicked in the legs and totally ignored. 

After a few moments, Jesse sits up. “Alright, you got me. I’m up!”

Kix and Hardcase squeal as Jesse lunges for them, trying to tickle them off of his bed. They make a break for the door, brushing past Rex as he reminds them, “Go get dressed, we’ll have breakfast ready soon.” To Jesse, he adds, “Don’t fall asleep on me, okay?”

“Nah, I’m up.” Jesse rolls out of bed and onto his feet, and Rex closes the door behind him. 

His watch reads- _oh, they have to leave_ **_now_ ** . Technically, they won’t be _late_ late, but they have things to put away, so on time is late. “Jess! We have to leave now, sorry! ‘Case, Kix, listen to Jesse and get ready!”

As much as he would rather wait for a reply, they’re about to be late. Practically leaping down the stairs, he bursts into the kitchen to find his toast already made up. Fives and Echo stand by the door to the garage, packed and ready. 

“Sorry guys, lost track of time. We gotta go.” He grabs a paper towel, sandwiches his toast, and stuffs it inside. “Thanks for making this.”

“No problem. Keep moving. We’re going to the car,” Echo answers.

“Meetcha out there in a second.” Rex grabs all his bags and books and quickly follows the twins out to his car.

Fortunately, the traffic light cycles are on their side today, and they make it to school five minutes before the warning bell is to sound. A thought crosses his mind briefly while he turns the key to lock up his car, whether he might see Ahsoka again before class. _Unlikely_ . For one, he’s a bit off-schedule, and for another, she was _intentionally_ seeking him out yesterday. Who knows where she would hang out before school on a normal day. It’s not like she makes her schedule around him. _Definitely not_. 

He’s a little disappointed to be right. Even though he usually walks to class alone, it feels a bit more lonely today. _Stop it_. Why is he even thinking like this? He’s never had a problem with his routine nor his solitude before. He probably should have gotten more sleep, or something, he thinks as he finishes the toast- cold now, but at least it’s something. 

She’s already in her seat when he walks into Econ, and she looks up immediately and smiles. _Like she was- no_ . She definitely was not looking for him. He wonders how much she looks at him while his back is turned during class. _Stop_. His lack of focus might ruin his playing later, but he seems to be incapable of focusing on anything else. 

A bit of the tension is relieved when she walks up to him when the bell rings. Up close, he notices that she’s got on her band jacket- in blue and white, like his jersey. “Hey! Um, I actually understand what’s going on. Thanks for helping!” 

And, unfortunately, Mrs. Ti overhears. “You two are study partners now?”

“I guess so?” Ahsoka replies awkwardly. She smiles, but it’s tense, stretched unnaturally, _not like how she was on the call_. 

“Yeah, as of yesterday,” Rex adds with as much nonchalance as he can muster. He desperately hopes his teacher has forgotten her own unfortunate joke.

Either she has forgotten, or has wisely decided to not bring it up, because she only responds with, “I see. Well, I hope this means Ahsoka has a new reason to pay attention in class.”

Ahsoka looks like she’s about to choke. “I, yes, Mrs. Ti. I- I’ve got to get to class, sorry!”

“See you later, Mrs. Ti,” Rex says, watching Ahsoka walk as fast as she can out the door. He wants to run after her, but that would only look bad for them. _So much for talking to her_. Maybe later.

“Good luck at your game tonight. I’ve heard good things about the team.”

He doesn’t want to think about why an Economics teacher is keeping tabs on the football team- maybe it’s out of an obligation to ‘school spirit’ or something. Whatever. He turns to leave, knowing Ahsoka is long gone and he only has a few minutes to make it to his next class. 

The next time he sees Ahsoka, it’s because she caught up with him in the athletic hallway before he gets to the locker room. She glances around uncomfortably, as all the football guys begin to flood the area, but then she says, “Um, band doesn’t have rehearsal today, so I just wanted to make sure I said good luck before the game.”

“Oh, uh, thank you.”

“And, sorry I ran off after Econ. Mrs. Ti really knows how to push my buttons.”

Rex is at a loss for what she means by that, but nods. “It’s okay, I understand.”

“You do?”

“Uh, maybe? It’s weird to be talking to a teacher like that. Mrs. Ti really jumps between a cool teacher and a serious one, so yeah.”

“Oh, right. Yep. Definitely.”

“So uh, you coming to the game?”

“Duh, I’m in the band.”

Rex almost smacks his face. “Right, duh, that was stupid.”

“It’s okay! You don’t have to remember my life and yours.”

“Well, still. I don’t know.”

She glances down, then up again. “My brothers are going to be there.”

Rex cracks a grin. “Mine too.”

“All of em? Does your dad take them?”

“Oh, um. He’s working. I meant, the twins. They’re on the team.”

“I’m sorry! I always mess this up with you, ugh! Just, forget I said anything.”

“Nah, it’s really okay, it happens. So, your brothers come often?”

“I mean, not exactly. Anakin hates cold weather, so as it gets later in the fall, he dips. And Obi-Wan _hates_ football. Well, not really, but he finds it boring. He’s a nerd.”

Rex laughs, “If you say so.”

“Yeah, well, it’s true.” She pauses before adding, “Anyways, I should let you go, maybe see you out there?”

“Sure thing. Good luck.”

“You too!” With that, she turns to go. He watches her for a moment before shaking his head and stepping into the locker room. 

The hours before the game seem to drag by. Usually, Rex will call Jesse, and then work on homework. An hour before the game, everyone suits up, and head out to the practice field for warmups while the junior varsity game finishes up. The band isn’t out yet- they only play for varsity games. He wonders how Ahsoka passes the time before the games. Does the band have weird traditions like the team does? Every year, the team has to come up with some sort of pre-game ceremony of sorts. Last year, they passed around a sock someone had stolen from coach Krell’s office. Everyone would have to kiss it, and repeat a phrase from the school song- a different one each week. It was... strange, but that’s high school football.

Finally, they get to take the field, the moment he always anticipates the most. Getting to sprint into the field’s lights while the crowd cheers and the band plays the song they had chosen at the beginning of the season. It’s a moment he likes to savor, and he takes it all in, with the wind in his face and his blood pumping fast and strong.

He almost forgets about the national anthem, he’s so focused on the game, until he hears the announcement. 

“Ladies and gentlemen, if you are able, please stand, and remove your hats for the singing of the national anthem by Coruscant High School’s own senior, Ahsoka Kenobi.” Rex removes his helmet per tradition, and watches Ahsoka’s shoulders rise and fall as she takes a deep breath. 

For some reason, the way they have Ahsoka set up, she’s in the middle of the field, facing the home side, centered in front of him from where he’s standing on the sidelines. He can make out her nervous smile as the music starts.

He’s listened to the anthem a hundred times before, but Ahsoka sings like no one he’s ever heard before. Holding his breath, hooked on every note- every tremor- of her impossibly magical voice, Rex is stunned by his reaction. He dares to glance at the players around him, wondering if he’s the only one feeling like this. The few guys next to him either look appreciative, or in their head about the game ahead. No one looks nearly as mesmerized as he feels. He swallows uncomfortably, hoping his face isn’t hinting at his internal turmoil. 

Only when the applause erupts during Ahsoka’s final note does the trance over him break. Even still, he finds himself staring as the guys around him start to shuffle and jump around to warm up. And then, for a split second, he could swear that she looks him right in the eye from across the field. Pure electricity crackles in his veins. He could check himself into a psych ward right now, the way his mind is racing. He holds her gaze, and clumsily tugs his helmet back on, trying to dispel the spinning of his head. He can’t breathe, there must be something wrong with him. It’s like panic, yet his heart is soaring. He wants to run, but he can’t tear his gaze away from her. Dizzy, yet wonderfully so- the strangest mix of emotions. 

A moment later, though, she begins to walk off the field. As Rex starts to go through his own warm ups, he sees her meet up with the rest of the band in their section of the stands, receiving a couple of hugs from the girls he saw with her in the hallway earlier. He turns away before she can catch him staring again, and knocks his helmet a few times to refocus himself. 

_Focus, Rex_ , he berates himself, _you have a game to win_. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter has been fueled by Your New Boyfriend. Dead serious, I have listened to it more times than is ideal for my sanity but haha you need a bit of insanity to write so it's all good :)


End file.
